Angels of Night and Day
by sakshi.chopra
Summary: After thousand years as a vampire, a secret from Eric's human life will turn his life upside down. Sookie will find her true purpose of life on the way to true love. A story about finding love, friendship, heartbreak, sacrifice and the spectacular journey of soul mates divided by time and destiny.
1. Chapter 1: The Vision

This is my first written work in any public forum. Please review and share suggestions.

"Erik, rise!"

There was a deep authority in the voice that gave the gentle command; authority that could not be refuted. Vampires had to heel to their maker's commands. This however was not a makers command. Not by long shot. But he could not ignore the pull. Suddenly Eric had to open his eyes in the middle of the day. He was wide awake. Something that shouldn't have been possible…He took in the face bent over him, immediately feeling the warm hand stroking his hair. She was tall, around six feet in height, very unusual for a woman. She had flowing hair of pure gold, a soft yet angular jaw with a slight cleft in the chin. She had an aura of pure love and pure magic around her and she looked at him with a love not possible to fathom for someone of this dimension, of this time, mortal or immortal. She was all that and yet when Eric became aware of her presence, all he could do was look into the deep pools of her eyes, eyes as blue as the North sea. The flecks of turquoise and cobalt blue pulled him in and held him there. He forgot where he was, forgot the time of the day, even forgot he was a vampire. All his awareness was drowning in those eyes, all his careful control was slipping and his mind went blank.

For the first time in over a thousand years, Eric Northman, vampire sheriff Area 5 Louisiana, mighty Viking warrior, felt what it was like to be glamored. And surprisingly, he didn't care. He was looking into the eyes that were a soft gust of fragrant wind after millennia of hot arid dust storms. He knew those eyes. He could never forget them even if it had been a thousand years since he had looked into them. A small smile appeared on the corner of his lips, even as the same ghost of a smile appeared on the woman's mouth. He had always had the same smile, the same hair, the same chin and yes, he had always had the same eyes as his mother.

She looked intently at his face, as her son recognized her. Then the ghost of her smile vanished and she became very serious. "Listen carefully…All the angst of a thousand years had a purpose. You were taken from me but I never abandoned you. When you are ready, you will learn all about me and how I can now come to you." She waited for a breath and made sure she still had his rapt attention. "You are in grave danger. Seek the purpose you were brought to this world for. Only with that can you be truly free. Find the light. Find the light my son and you will be free!"

Suddenly it was dark. Eric woke with a start and immediately knew it in his body that it was two in the afternoon. He didn't get a chance to ponder over the startling dream and was immediately pulled to day death again. There he lay, dead to the world, safe in his own sanctuary, totally oblivious to the turn his life was soon going to take.


	2. Chapter 2: I see you

She walked into Fangtasia and out of the blue, just like that, Eric was painfully aware or her. Sookie Stackhouse was not extraordinary, nor was she a glorious beauty. She was around five and a half feet tall with a rounded wholesome figure. She wore a plain white cotton dress that covered all of those curves. Her hair was a deep rich gold color that would make her stand out in a sea of blonds, but almost as if she didn't want to stand out, it remained subdued in a chaste pony tail at the top of her head.

Suddenly, Eric couldn't concentrate on his bored expression and had to give in to a miniscule eye twitch. Somehow, everything around him became charged, and the electricity came from this one child of a woman, who looked totally out of place in the sea of vermin swarming his bar. Eric concentrated on the new scent, trying to place it somehow, trying to understand, but it was mixed with so much else. She walked away from him, demurely making her way with her date and went infuriatingly far, to a small booth, with an infuriating no count of a vampire who had checked in with him a few days ago. Eric's sight had remained fixed on her from the moment she had entered, till the time she sat in the far away booth. Finally she sensed his gaze and looked up.

Eric saw the slight widening of her big dark brown eyes as she took in the huge frame of the seemingly bored Viking, spread out on his throne. She saw the big leather boots, the dark jeans on his long long legs, the black shirt and jacket doing little to hide his muscular flat abs, broad shoulders and the casually resting large hands. He had the perfect poker face of a disinterested aristocrat, the angular jaw expressionlessly locked over perfectly sensuous red lips. He had stepped right out of a Greek statue or a glossy fashion magazine. She took her time, taking in his glorious presence. When Sookie reached his eyes, she was trapped. His eyes were the most alive thing in the whole bar full of enthusiastic, intoxicated, dancing, falling depraved beings. His body could somehow fit there, somehow make sense in that bar, but the eyes were from far off. They were the blue of sparkling sunlit water, as wild and as stormy as the deepest ocean, dancing like the brooks on a rainy mountain. Sookie knew from past experience that she could not be glamoured, but looking into the strange godlike creature's eyes for a moment, was compelling her to let go and loose herself. She struggled with the deep call coming from the tempestuous eyes of the stranger, which was nothing like the childish attempts of Bill to glamour and gain control over her. She could almost taste the ancient layers of his mind working over hers, commanding her, coaxing her, caressing her to give herself up.

The moment Eric caught her gaze he felt an unmistakable pull, almost as if she could glamor him. In the same astounding moment, he found himself standing on a snowy cliff, looking over the deep blue ocean of his homeland. In the long, mostly tormented thousand years of his existence, he had never once found that forgotten memory, however much he tried to recreate it in his mind. He was swept in this vision…the vision of glorious sun on the choppy ocean, the ocean somehow completely nestled in the girl's eyes. And he wanted to drown in that ocean.

"Stop staring Sookie!" Bill interjected, sounding almost angry. "Don't look that way. That's Eric, the vampire sheriff of this area, owner of this bar. Of all the ruthless vampires I have ever met, he certainly is the worst. You don't want to attract his attention. Sweetheart, he tortures people for sport!" Bill was carrying on with the tirade and Sookie was not paying attention. Frankly this whole dating business was a little new to her, Bill being her first boyfriend and all, and she was still a free spirit at heart, not used to listening to instructions. She was not the unfaithful kind or casual with her relationship. Bill was her first and she certainly felt she loved him. She could go to the end of the world with him. But the tall demigod in front of her surreptitiously hogged all her awareness and she couldn't turn away from him.

"Sookie are you listening?! Look at me!" Bill grabbed her arm and hissed angrily at her.

With monumental effort, she turned her head and looked her date, feeling a little dizzy from the moment of struggle with Eric. It was annoying really. Even knowing what the handsome strange vampire was doing to her, she had felt almost safe being surrounded in his force. In those few moments of thrall, she felt as if she had been floating in the ocean of his eyes and had transcended to another world, a world surprisingly full of light and joy. Now she was rudely pulled back to the dark, noisy bar and found herself in the company of the void mind of Bill Compton, her boyfriend.

When she turned her eyes, Eric was suddenly yanked back to Fangtasia and had a moment of haze, which for the record had never ever happened to him as a vampire. He saw the way Bill roughly held her upper arm, shaking her. He saw the small tug at the corner of her lips that didn't quite become the smile it was meant to be. This more than anything else, angered him.

Before Sookie could let Bill know of her annoyance, and before she could build up her mental shields after Eric had swept them away, she heard a loud hateful exclamation from somewhere behind her. She turned and saw a guy in ordinary checked shirt and trousers, looking furtively around him. She was already on her feet as the guy thought about his hidden bomb again.

"_I am going to destroy this filth,,, I am soldier of God!"_

Bill stood up, more annoyed than before, "Sookie! Did you even listen what I told you about Eric?"

"HUSH Bill!" she shot back, having a vague idea of some vampire sheriff business Bill was going on about.

"Sookie sweetheart, are you still sure you want to ask around about those murdered women right now? This is not the place to ask for help. I offer again that I will find out the murderer for you."

The hateful rant assailed her again, _"Look at that demon, sitting on Hell's throne…I am going to kill him first and go to heaven…"_

Sookie was getting desperate and Bill was driveling on. She had to do something. She looked at the stranger named Eric again. He was still looking at her and she made up her mind.

"Bill let go of my arm."

"Sookie what has gotten into you?"

Getting more and more irritated with Bill, she struggled against his hold and he let go in surprise.

Bill didn't know what was going on. He hadn't wanted to come here this evening. He'd rather keep Sookie all to himself in his home but Sookie was no doormat. Each day with her was a new struggle for the vampire. He simply couldn't understand why she wanted to investigate the murders that had happened in her town Bon Temps. The police had Sookie's brother Jason and were investigating the matter. Why wouldn't his headstrong and willful mate let the police do their job and head to his advice by concentrating on her own safety? Bill didn't care much about Jason. The human was totally wild and out of hand. Now he had walked into trouble of his own making. But Sookie was a different matter altogether. She was a well brought up Southern girl and all his experience in women said and southern girls were supposed to be respectful to authority. Bill considered himself to be the grown up in their relationship, and when he told her to do something, he expected Sookie to comply happily. Right now, she didn't look willing enough to comply. With an effort, Bill changed tact. He dropped her arm and stood in front of her, looking worried.

"Sweetheart, are you not feeling well? Do you wish me to take you home?"

Sookie did not have time for her overbearing boyfriend right now. She could make peace with him later. Right now she needed to alert Eric about the human bomb in his bar. She frantically looked again towards Eric.

Eric had followed the little exchange between Compton and the girl with his extraordinary hearing and sight. He understood a lot more than he saw. So when she looked at him from across the floor, he clearly understood her look. He turned to Pam, "Pam, engage Compton for a minute."

"No shit! Do I get a diamond for the engagement?" Pam deadpanned.

Sookie was looking at him again, more desperate this time.

"Pam go!" Surprisingly this human was making him as desperate as she was.

By now all Sookie could concentrate on was the hate speech. "Bill, get out of the way!"

"_I am a soldier of God! I have a higher purpose! I have to prove my worth to God of my worth!"_

She didn't have a choice now. She needed to stop the bomber before innocent people were killed. As loud as she could manage to be heard atop the noise in the bar, Sookie shouted, "BOMB! Bomb in the bar!"

There was a rush of movement around her and then suddenly all went dark for Sookie and she collapsed in the stampede.


	3. Chapter 3: Supernova

It was straight out of a nightmare.

Agonizing wails and cries for help from all around her saturated Sookie's ears and mind. The mental agony from the humans, the torment of the mortally wounded who just wanted to die to end the pain of dismembered limbs, pushed her to the brink where she wanted to die herself.

It was unbearable!

It was pure torture!

It was not what a human could remotely dream to live through. Sookie wanted to get up but she was paralyzed, pinned on the spot by the weight of the suffering around her. Her own conscience was drowning in the grief, to the point where she could not separate the pain around her from herself, and that pain became her own.

When Sookie raised the alarm, it took Eric only a third of a second to reach her and another half a second to grasp and carry her to his office at the back of the bar. That happened to be his first response. In the next second, as surprised as he felt for having put the girl above the need to catch and stop the pathetic bomber, he was more frustrated with himself for having forgotten to even think about Pam, his child! He had barely made to the office when a huge explosion shook the building. He put the unconscious girl on the couch of his office and turned to see the whole front of the establishment ravaged with broken debris, smoke and flame. Eric knew how dangerous the fire could be for him but he could not leave Pam in pain. And Pam was in great pain. The area around Eric's throne was the worst damaged. If he was sitting there two seconds ago, he would have met his true death today.

Pam had somehow ducked behind the platform with the throne as soon as the smell of explosive hit her, but her back was burnt. Eric could hardly walk because of the pain coming through their maker-child blood bond. But he didn't pay heed to the pain. Right now, Pam needed him and his long years had taught him to master pain. He found his barely conscious progeny, bit into his wrist and held her mouth to his blood, to start the healing. With his free hand he brought out his cell phone and dialed 911.

As soon as Eric turned his back, Bill slipped into Eric's office.

Sookie was trapped inside a dark chasm within her. She ran, she screamed, she hid, but she could not shut out the cries for help. It was by far the darkest moment of her whole existence and she was fast loosing hope. Round and round she stumbled, looking for an opening, frantically searching for even a grain of light to guide her. Every particle of her being was being doused in the misery of those around her. She could feel calls from all around her…calls that just had to be answered. She stumbled again and this time, her body refused to get up. Mentally, she felt as paralyzed as she physically was at that time. No, the running would solve no purpose. She had to think of something. She took a moment and collected her thoughts. As if waiting for her to reach out, something started to glow ahead of her, a soft and gentle glow. A small flicker of hope made her rise again and start towards the glow. The glow surrounded her now and bathed her wounds from the chasm. Slowly, the glow she had walked into, started sticking to her body and she saw it channel and flow all over herself in a million estuaries.

Pam's burns started to heal and Eric started feeling relieved. Around him, everything was still chaotic. There was heavy smoke everywhere. Vampires didn't need to breath but even he could feel the hot soot and smoke up his nose. He knew a lot of humans wouldn't make it. He heard the fire truck sirens from a distance and put that matter away for the time being. Whatever humans had a chance would be tended to by the paramedics.

Sookie was baffled and fascinated by the strange light enveloping her. Where had it come from? Who was sending it? Why was it coming to her in her hour of need? Was it already within her? Whatever it was, was warming, strengthening and calming her. She relaxed and gave into the sensation.

Bill had run towards the back of the building the moment Sookie had shrieked the warning about the bomb. He knew he had to save himself first and if he did that, he could easily save Sookie through his blood. This was a good chance to give her his blood to tie her up to himself. So when Eric suddenly appeared and carried Sookie to safety he felt angry and bitter for the interference of the sheriff with his pet. No matter…even if she didn't need healing, Bill decided to try and coax her to drink his blood. He entered the office and was immediately relieved to find her unconscious. Quickly, he bit into his wrist and forced it into her slack mouth.

As soon as the forced blood touched Sookie's tongue, Bill was savagely thrown back from the unconscious girl with an unnatural force. The force came in the guise of a light so bright that it burned away Bill's eyes before he could close them.

Eric was still kneeling by Pam, when the second explosion hit him with the force of a thousand sledge hammers. He was knocked over, stunned and paralyzed. Dazedly, he realized there was no heat this time. He opened his eyes and the whole room was burning anew with a bright incandescent light. Slowly he sat up again and looked around for the source.

_Fucking hell! Why is my office shining like a fucking supernova!_

When the firefighters doused the fire and finally broke in an entry into the building, there was a pin drop silence around them. People were sitting, standing and lying around, in a deep relaxing sleep. But as lord be their witness, even if the blast had not left one inch inside the building coherent, no one, living or undead, had a single scratch on their bodies. No one, except a comatose young girl with blonde hair and a vampire with burnt eyes.


	4. Chapter 4: Cerebration and Vacuity

_Fucking hell! Why is my office shining like a fucking supernova!_

Eric looked on as the lightshow lasted for a good five seconds and then everything went dark. First thing Eric noticed after the darkness took over again was the abrupt end to the cries of pain and hysteria from all around him. It was as if everyone was snapped shut and glamored off. Even the vampires! _Fuck!_

Pam was steadily gaining strength, so he left her sitting against the platform and rushed towards his office in confusion.

The office looked in shambles, everything thrown apart. Eric knew this was not because of the explosion outside. No, that destruction couldn't reach here. He carefully studied the room. That girl he had previously saved was still in the same place, lying in the exact same position on the couch, as he had left her. She had some fresh blood on her face and neck. _Strange_! He felt her pulse and did a quick check for any outward injuries. _None!_ He knelt beside her and tried to smell for any injury he could have missed.

_This is not her blood and damn she smells great_

He leaned in, just inches away from the crevice of her neck, and inhaled deeply. No, the blood on her face was definitely not hers. If it had been, he couldn't have turned away from her. 

Eric studied every aspect of her vitals through his sensitive ears and nose but couldn't find anything wrong with her. She appeared to be in some deep sleep state. _Maybe she passed out._

Taking another appreciative headful of her scent, he turned to look for more clues. There at the back, under a fallen cabinet, lay the vampire who had brought this girl to Fangasia this evening. _So it is his blood on her face_, he quickly concluded. Maybe the vamp had healed her with his blood. That would surely explain her lack of any outward injuries. But something did not sit right here. Eric walked up to the young vampire and easily lifted the cabinet off him.

_His eyes! What the hell happened to his eyes! _

Bill's eyes were scorched, through and through, slight wisps of black and red smoke still emanating from them as if the fire that had burned them had reached right inside his brain. Eric grimaced at the disgusting sight and smell. The eye balls were entirely missing as if someone had gauged them out of the sockets and despite being a vampire, Bill had clearly passed out from the pain. _What a weasel!_

_So the weasel came here after the explosion outside to check on his pet, found her in some kind of injured state and decided to heal her. Then came the big bang and Bill was thrown back with scorched eyes. The question, how the hell did the light flash leave the girl untouched when it had clearly been powerful enough to spread outside and stun everybody. Her gallant companion was surely passed out at the back with barbequed eyes._

Eric could still remember been thrown forward on impact but neither did that happen usually, nor did he take it lightly.

_Add to that, the girl was not injured when he carried her there, only unconscious. Humans did that when stressed out. She had done that after she shouted the hell out about the bomb. Wait, how did she know about the bomb? _

He was definitely missing some important link and Eric was not someone who could turn away from the blatant puzzle on his hands.

He carefully tested the air around him.

_No magic, no explosive, no burning except Bill Compton's eyes_.

Eric closed his eyes and concentrated. No other person had come here except himself, his meal of the evening, Pam, his day man Bobby maybe earlier during the day, and now a toasting vampire and a blonde human. No trace of anyone who could conjure that light up, because he sure as hell didn't smell any fairies!

He turned towards the girl and watched her sleep, while again going over all the events in his mind in their order of being shoved at him. He was quickly drawing a blank out of the whole bloody mystery and Eric didn't like that.

_Ok then, start at the beginning. Start with the gutted human who carried the bomb. _

Eric started towards the door and glanced again at the softly breathing human on his couch. She really was beautiful in her own way. _Why is she still unconscious?_ _Maybe the shock….For all the talk of equal rights, humans really are breakable. _Eric could tell by the ruckus outside that the firefighters had arrived. There was no fire to fight though. He didn't have much time to investigate himself before all the evidence was trampled. Before he could get more distracted by the peacefully sleeping girl, he rolled his eyes at himself and crossed the threshold.

In his more than thousand mortal and immortal years in the world, Eric hadn't once experienced anything that could prepare him for the shock waiting for him outside in the bar area. It was truly astounding. He gaped at the sleeping forms of humans all around him, lost in a deep slumber, covered with soot but without a single bleeding scratch on their frozen bodies. They were not bleeding, he could tell, vampire senses and all. They were just out of sorts in some kind of shock! Well that would really hit the news big time! Pam and his bartender Longshadow had been the only two vampires other than himself and Bill in Fangtasia that night. Pam was now stirring slightly, and Eric could tell that Longshadow was sprawled behind the bar, healing from the glass shards of broken bottles around him. There was one set of human remains around fifteen feet from his now dilapidated throne and platform, which apparently was all that was left of the bomber. He smelt the chemicals used for _home-made_ explosives on the disjointed remains. No shred of clothing he found told him anything else about the dead meat. Pam hadn't been at the door this evening so she wouldn't know about his identity, and the humans who were manning the entrance would not remember!

_Shit! This is going to be a long night. I need to cook up one hell of a story! At least the sleeping vermin don't need glamoring! But if they were bloody awake, they could perhaps identify our cooked guest here. Hell, maybe one of these sleeping beauties was an accomplice._

He thought about it and quickly came up with a strategy.

_If the remains were left here, they would show the nature of the first explosion and he wouldn't be able to explain the lack of injury to all present. No good…_

So Eric moved on to the second option.

_If the cops didn't find the remains of the bomber, they could be convinced that this had been some kind of sonic weapon, planted in his bar, which had somehow stunned everyone present. They would be confused and would have to keep tabs on everyone here and interrogate them to look for perpetrators and more clues. That would buy him time to get to them himself and find out if indeed anyone here was an accomplice or knew anything. It would turn into a full blown investigation which he would have to smother later…_He shrugged at that unfazed_…that was usual protocol and easily done. Whatever trace explosive and soot the investigators found could be removed, the investigators glamored to forget. The medics will clear the humans as apparently they were just shocked and might even have more insight into the humans' present condition and Eric wouldn't have to spend time to understand their state himself. _

That decided, he didn't spare a second thought on it and made quick work of removing and hiding the bomber's remains, just as the firefighters started pounding the wreckage to make their way inside. Then, he returned to his office and carried the still unconscious Bill to the front of the building, to remove the attention of the investigators from his office. Eric tossed him to the floor outside and kicked him once on his side, which elicited a groan from Bill. Thus satisfied that Bill's unconscious state was just passing, he gave him a parting kick and returned to ponder over his blonde guest.


	5. Chapter 5: Nightmares

Eric sat in his study and pondered over the email from his contact in Shreveport PD. It was a list of details on all seventy six humans _rescued_ from Fangtasia on the night of the explosion. There was a Jim Sanders in there who was the member of the Fellowship of the Sun and who absolutely had no business in a vampire bar. He smiled at himself and gave a mental tick mark to his already strong suspicion.

Pam barged in at the same instant, catching on her master's mood.

"Well, isn't someone smug this evening?"

"Did the sale deed come through Pam?"

She held up a legal sized manila envelope containing paperwork on sales of a few properties in Shreveport including a large plot of land housing Shreveport's FOTS headquarters, and raised an eyebrow. Eric relaxed back on his chair and brought his feet on the table, a slight smirk building on his usually expressionless face.

"We had a guest from FOTS that night."

At this little bit of information, Pam raised both her eyebrows and gave her master an appreciative nod. Eric quickly signed the papers and faxed them to his attorney, before turning again to Pam.

"Send a text to all present minions in town to meet in two hours. We have a new confessional." Pam smiled widely, understanding exactly which new address had to be texted and Eric's smirk became an evil grin as he again turned to his email.

..

* * *

..

The dreams started just like they did every day since the last few days, sometimes more than once a day… Loud explosion, smoke, hate, dust, mangled bodies and blood. Sookie started to scream and run.

The nurse on duty jumped on seeing the monitors and dialed the intercom, "Doctor I think she is having a seizure!" She ended the call and in the same breath called Eric Northman.

Sookie desperately tried to run away from the devastation. _If only she could fly!_ It seemed to go on for hours. She ran but the smell of burning flesh didn't leave her, the smoke blinded her and she fell right into a pool of someone's blood…

Desperation grew.

Someone was calling.

Sookie stilled and tried to listen. Surely, a voice came through as though from afar.

"Sookie… Can you hear me?"

He was calling Sookie, gently, urgently. She recognized the lovely deep resonating voice, with a slight foreign accent maybe. He was holding her hand and caressing her cheek. The three fingertips on her face were cool and felt heavenly. She breathed in relief.

There were no cries of pain now. No disaster to be averted. No compelling need to get up and do something. There was just the awareness of the voice and the feel of the hands. She reveled in the sensation of that voice that cradled her whole being.

Suddenly, the hands left her and she had a feeling of being blind and stranded in the dark. She could not shake off her sudden need for that voice again.

_No. No. No. I want you back. Where are you? _She silently called to the stranger.

Then she heard someone else speak over her head. "She is alright now. Her vitals are getting back to normal as we speak. I think she will be fine. Thank you for coming Mr. Northman."

The beloved voice spoke again, "Believe me, it is my pleasure!"

No one spoke for a very long time after that. The dull throb of ailing, anguished depressed thoughts assailed her again, from all around her. She struggled to keep afloat, trying to hold onto her personal talisman of Eric's voice, waiting patiently to hear from him again. Sookie waited endlessly for him to say anything to cut out the murk surrounding her, something else to hold on to in his absence. Eventually she felt drained and bone tired. _He has abandoned me again._ _Why doesn't he ever stay_. With the last thought of his lingering touch on her face, she let go and fell again to deep sleep.

..

* * *

..

Eric sat down on Sookie's bed and ignored the disapproving grumble coming vaguely from Bill's direction. He also ignored the polite words of thanks coming from Sookie's grandmother; just as he turned a deaf ear to Sookie's mumbling brother.

He had become used to these reactions and didn't have to pay attention to respond to anything they said. In the two weeks since the bombing and the one and a half week since the doctor discovered that when a fit overtook her, Sookie stabilized remarkably when Eric talked to her, he had been called six times to help out with Sookie's comatose condition. She was in this unconscious, unresponsive state where she obstinately didn't respond to any treatment or stimuli all kinds of specialist doctors tried out on her. Sookie was in a very fragile state. Six times she had gone into a kind of seizure when the brain probes attached to her showed abnormal stress and frenzied activity in her frontal and temporal lobes. The doctors surmised that she might be going through severe post-traumatic stress after the incident at the bar and might be having bad nightmares from it, but they had no idea what to do.

On Eric's orders, a team of specialists was working on her case, for three straight days and nights, but they had only drawn blanks. Finally, she responded with a slight ghost of a smile when Eric visited her on the fourth night after the incident and the neurologist present pounced on the small break they had had with the strange case. Of all the plethora of sound, scent and touch stimuli tried on her, Sookie responded to the voice of a thousand year old vampire she didn't know at all. _Go figure! _

Settling beside her, Eric took a discrete whiff of Sookie's scent and felt his annoyance to the audience in the room, slowly slip away. Next to go, was his worry for Sookie that had been growing since the abrupt call he got from her doctor an hour back. He inhaled deeply and closed his eyes, going back to this secret place in his mind, specially reserved for his evenings with his beautiful sleeping enigma. _Talk to me min kära…What are you?_

_.._

* * *

..

Another hour passed and according to the monitors, Sookie slowly went back to deep sleep. Eric sat very still at her side, relaxed and having some well-deserved downtime after a draining but dry evening. Her gran came in to check on Sookie and Eric stood up, to get to his vampire business.


	6. Chapter 6: Snakes and Revelations

Bill Compton was fast running out of time.

When he woke up the next night, blinded and cripplingly weakened from the white explosion, he found himself in the cold and dark place he could not recognize by smell, lying in a coffin. The lack of sight was crushing him. He was fed synthetic blood and then subjected to a grueling interrogation from Sheriff Northman's second in command – Pam. And Pam was no softy. The thing here was that he didn't know what went wrong in Eric's office. He stuck to his story of finding Sookie unconscious in the room and then being a victim to another explosion.

On the second night, he was cuffed to silver chains hanging from the ceiling of the room and got a visit from Sheriff Northman himself.

"Bill Compton!" Eric said in a sickeningly sweet tone layered heavily with contempt.

Bill shivered slightly at the greeting and nodded in response, "Sheriff."

Eric strolled casually towards the hanging vampire and stopped a foot away.

"I hope your accommodations are up to mark?"

"Yes Sheriff! To what do I owe this hospitality?" Bill practically spat out the last word.

"Now Bill, where are your manners? Be nice", Eric was starting to enjoy taunting the scowling vampire hanging in front of him. The little shit really had no idea what Eric could do to him and scowling was not helping his cause. Added to that, he was hiding the fact that he had tried to give Sookie his blood in Eric's office. The human did not smell of Bill at all, so he guessed that they were just friends and surely Bill tried to force feed her his blood that evening and had been unsuccessful. Given the circumstances he had to make sure he got every piece of information he could. She certainly smelled good but scent was not enough to keep facts from a sheriff, that too a sheriff of Eric's stature and reputation. Something happened in his office that evening and Eric would leave nothing past him to get to it.

"Listen closely and try not to be as brain dead as you are! Was Sookie unconscious when you came to my office?"

"How do you know her?" Bill's expression became furtive and Eric did not miss it.

"Answer the damn question Bill" Eric asked again, with a perfectly controlled and calm tone.

Bill fell silent, but Eric was very patient.

"Was she unconscious?"

"Yes"

"Well that didn't hurt, did it?"

Bill continued to scowl and Eric moved on.

"Did you give her your blood?"

"Yes"

_Bullshit… "_Did she drink your blood?"

"She was unconscious."

"So you forced fed her?"

"I wanted to bring her out of shock!"

_How gallant!_ "OK so you forced fed her?"

Pause…Eric noted the pause.

"Yes"

_There goes the gallantry award!_ "So she was healed?"

"I don't know. I was struck by a second explosion"

_Ahhh, the second explosion._ "You were blinded by that explosion. What happened to Sookie?"

"I don't know"

_If he doesn't know then she does not have even a trace of his blood in her._

"Is she your pet?"

Bill actually managed to hiss at this one and tried to sound menacing, "Sookie is mine!"

_Again Bullshit_… "Are you two very, uh, _close_?"

"Sookie is mine!" he repeated like clockwork.

_Yeah yeah… _Eric probed further, "So she must have had your blood before?"

Another eloquent pause…

"Yes"

Eric smirked,_ you are so full of bullshit little weasel!_ O_ver to plan B then_. He turned, "Pam! Let Mr. Compton leave. Arrange for transportation to take him home and a donor if he needs to feed."

..

* * *

..

After she grudgingly set Bill in a cab, Pam went on to confront Eric. She knew that he knew Bill was lying. Why would he not let her play then? She could feel Eric's good mood, which baffled her even more.

"Don't tell me you suddenly turned Christian!"

Eric smiled at his child. "Trust me Pam! Rats are useful too."

Pam became petulant, "A little fun won't hurt a rat…"

"Oh you will have your fun alright. He revealed more than he wanted to and by not telling me the truth, he has proved he is not trustworthy and is hiding something. Right now, surveillance is being put around him and in his home. He cannot hide and he cannot get away from me. I feel no reason to host him any longer than necessary and make him suspicious."

Finally Pam shrugged and Eric smiled. Going back to things she could understand, she went ahead and gave him a report on the rebuilding work going on in Fangtasia.

..

* * *

..

It took Bill one whole slow week to fully recover his strength and his eyes. He was on the verge of madness by the time and resented every power of the universe that had sent him to dilapidated back waters Bon Temps. Sookie still hadn't had his blood even once and he needed to control her. So when Bill found out that Sookie was in coma, getting treated at the intensive care unit of Willis-Knighton Medical Center in Shreveport, he was actually angry at the puny human for putting his plans in disarray, again.

Then he got to know about the special 'Eric Northman' therapy sessions that Sookie was getting and his madness hit the roof. Something needed to be done about the Sheriff. Too much of his own future in the vampire ranks, was riding on the girl. And Eric was starting to get too involved with her. On this last visit, Eric was totally focused on Sookie and hadn't even looked at him, instead of just sticking to ignoring the other humans.

Grumbling, he stepped outside the hospital building and brought out his phone. There was a new text message from Pam, beeping on the screen. The message was a summons for all vampires in area 5 Louisiana for an emergency security meeting at the new area headquarters (after Fangtasia was closed up for repairs) with an address in Shreveport which was... _Wait! A Church? _

Totally missing the humor of the situation, he scrolled through his emergency contacts and dialed a number. It rang twice, before a cold irritated voice answered curtly, "What?"

"Good evening Andre...I wish to speak with her Majesty on an urgent matter."

..

* * *

..

Eric was out of the glass door of the ICU when Adele Stackhouse, Sookie's gran, finally made a decision and called out to him.

"Mr. Northman. Can I speak with you for a moment?"

Eric stopped and turned back. He had never once spoken directly to her. There had been no urgent need. The routine information and forms were all taken care of by the staff and doctors, his only contact being with the specialists who were actually treating Sookie.

Eric did not have to offer condolences and support, through sissy platitudes that most humans and the likes of Compton were so good at. He just strictly stuck to business. As it is Pam was enjoying much more than she should be allowed to, on account to his growing visits to a sick human. He had somehow kept this disturbing piece of news from spreading to other vampires in his area. He could not explain to them his doubts for the unconscious girl, and they should surely not think him to be soft with a human in the absence of any other explanation.

So Eric was surprised when Adele called out to him and approached with a polite smile.

"First of all I want to sincerely thank you for all that you have done for my granddaughter. You really didn't have to go all the way like this."

"Mrs. Stackhouse, please don't thank me. It's nothing really." Eric was trying to be polite, on account of the woman who slept peacefully inside those doors and the woman who stood in front of him not looking even slightly scared of being in the company of a vampire.

"It is a lot for my family Sir. I will always be indebted to you." She took a deep breath and continued. "Mr. Northman, though I may not be as old as you are, but my eyes have seen a lot. I wouldn't be confiding in you right now if I thought that you would harm my granddaughter in any way. Somehow, and I do not understand why, but my Sookie trusts you, trusts your presence with her. That is the reason I needed to speak about this. I know you are doing a lot for her treatment and all, but I think the hospital is not a good place for her right now."

Eric was taken aback and his eyes narrowed. _What is she talking about? _"Are you not satisfied with the doctors, Mrs. Stackhouse?"

"No, no, please! You misunderstand me." Adele was starting to struggle now. How do you tell a stranger, that too a vampire, that her granddaughter was telepathic! First he wouldn't believe her, then he would scoff at her and then just like all of Bon Temps, he would call Sookie and herself plain crazy. But crazy or not, if it was trauma that was keeping her brave little girl down, then the hospital was one place that would be forever full of traumatic thoughts of all kind. Sookie could get no rest here, no respite. Mr. Northman would keep bringing doctors from all around, and not listen about getting Sookie out of there without telling him the honest truth to convince him. She had earlier tried the pretense of medical insurance but Eric had flat out refused to listen and paid for everything. That was before she knew that Sookie was not suffering from any outward injuries or concussions.

She took another deep breath and steeled herself. "She is telepathic. My Sookie, can uh..hear people's thoughts…"

Eric went blank and stared at Adele. It took him thirty seconds to process the news he had just got and then another five seconds to formulate a reply and speak without any emotion, "_Well then_, _isn't that sweet_!"

He took out his cell phone and was still staring at Adele while he dialed a number.

"Dr Ludwig? Eric Northman here."


	7. Chapter 7: Infuriating Voids

It was dark but not the lonely kind of dark. It was the peaceful, restful kind of dark.

Sookie took a long deep breath, taking in the slight perfume lilting in the air. She knew that after a long time of being trapped in the endless mess of dreams inside her head, this time she actually could open her eyes right then, to the real world. But she took her time and took in her surroundings. She could tell she was in her own bed, in her room, covered by her quilt that gran had made. She could tell Gran was sleeping, in her bedroom across the hall. Was it Jason watching TV downstairs? _Slight agitation over the play, anticipation for a date tomorrow, bear, pie, hmmm definitely Jason._

Someone was playing lightly with her hair. It felt like a void, a negative space where something should be. _Hmmm vampire… Bill…_She let herself luxuriate in the slight touch and felt happy, satisfied.

She felt around and noticed another void outside the house, maybe as far as the tree line. There was no reason for a vampire to be standing/spying outside the house. Did anyone follow Bill and her when they came back from Fangtasia?

_When did we come back? I don't remember coming back! What happened? Didn't I have a fight with Bill? I don't remember_…She stiffened at the thought…_Why don't I remember?_

Sookie opened her eyes with a start and immediately felt blind. _Oh, the lights are off. _She rolled her eyes at herself and tried to sit up. Maybe she had slept a long while, because her muscles were not responding the way she would have liked them to. She was too stiff, just like having slept too long in a cramped place, in the same position.

She was looking around and bracing her hands under her to sit up, when not half asleep anymore, she noticed the silent figure sitting on her bed at her side, playing with her hair and watching her intently. Sookie was immediately flustered by the presence and irritated with the lack of light.

"Bill? Is that you?" she asked quietly.

"Oh so now you ask for him?"

Confusion gave way to alarm and her voice was immediately louder. "Who the hell are y…?

She was shut off mid-sentence, when the stranger suddenly covered her mouth with an unrelenting hand, his other hand at the back of her head to effectively trap her. She hadn't even gotten a chance to breath. She looked at her attacker and gasped in recognition!

_Eric?_

Bill stood stock still, in sight of Sookie's home, an old farmhouse right across the cemetery bordering his own house, and fought with his instinct. His orders were clear. Glamor, blood tie, seduction, kidnap…do whatever, but bring Sookie to the Queen of Louisiana. In return, he would become her Majesty's private area investigator, directly under her protection. To be the law himself, was something he was really looking forward to, especially since his ill-fated tryst with the very powerful and very old area sheriff. He wanted revenge and he wanted power. Sookie conveniently presented him with both. The queen would punish the mighty sheriff for losing a telepath from right under his nose even if she conveniently forgot to mention about the said telepath to Eric, and Bill would have _tracked_ and _helped_ _procure_ the telepath for the court. The Queen, Sophie Anne, would be rid of a powerful sheriff who was a threat to her position and Bill would get a lot ahead in his undead life. It was really important for his survival, especially since he was already on Eric Northman's radar.

Out of glamor, blood tie, seduction or kidnap, Bill was forced to use the harder three as Sookie could not be glamored. He also knew it from the moment she and Eric looked at each other in that accursed bar, two weeks back, that Eric would not give up this human easily now. He would make it an ego tussle. Eric Northman didn't fall in friendships or keep pets. Love was something he wouldn't even recognize infesting his hair. But if Eric set his eyes on a female, human or vampire, she was a lost cause from the word go. Insecurity was creeping inside Bill and he had nothing in his hands to lessen it yet. And Eric better not get to know about the telepathy, otherwise even Sophie Ann would have to come up with a really brilliant plan for keeping her from him.

So Bill had to be real quick and real sly now, to make a claim on the girl before his ticket to a better position expired on him. If he failed, the queen would send her trusted second Andre who would get the girl as well as kill him. Standing at the edge of Sookie's house, he carefully sifted through his options and silently plotted his moves.

Sookie's eyebrows shot up and her eyes went round in shock as she recognized the stranger in her room. She struggled with his hand on her mouth but it didn't budge. Eric held her with a vice like grip, staring intently into her eyes. She cringed back from him. _If eyes could kill…_

"You are going to listen very carefully to what I say." He said in a low cold voice that raised the hair at the back of Sookie's neck. She knew in her skin that right now she wouldn't dream to cross the vampire holding her. She wanted to live after all. Sookie nodded, whatever much she could manage in the evil grip. He kept his intent gaze burning into her skin. Sookie waited for what he had to say but Eric remained silent. If it was possible, his eyes burnt even more into hers and after a long moment, she felt silent tears escaping the corners of her eyes, whether from not blinking or from fear, she did not know. She might as well have had holes in her head by now but Eric didn't say anything, although he did seem a little satisfied with the tears. Some time passed before the frightened girl could feel the grip loosening slightly. Gradually the blood started circulating again and her cheeks flamed red.

"You are a liar!"

It felt like a slap on her face. Sookie's fear quickly turned into anger and she forcefully shook her face away. For another long moment, both of them stared at each other, Sookie half sitting, half lying, with angry eyes and Eric, sitting and half bent on her, inches away from her face, looking grim.

Finally the girl broke the silence and sat up. The vampire returned to sitting straight across from her.

The girl whispered furiously, "Just who do you think you are? Spying on and waking people in their bed? Then harassing and calling them liars? Stop staring at me! I am not scared of ill-mannered bullies like you!" she finished with a scowl. It was a small lie but Sookie was too prideful to let him know that he could scare her.

Eric was taken aback. Was she really crazy like the people in her town kept saying? No one talked to him like that…least of all a _fucking human. _The pathetic creatures were supposed to cower under him, cower and grovel and stammer for mercy. Hell, even vampires cowered under him for that matter. And this tiny girl was practically ordering him to look away! This was unacceptable.

Just like Sookie, anger flared within Eric even if outwardly his expression showed no change whatsoever.

"You cannot hear me."

"Oh I sure can thankyouverymuch! You just called me a liar!"

This human was getting more uppity by the second but Eric still didn't show any change in his voice or expression. He said with a deadly calm, leering a little, "I called you a number of things before I called you a liar. You know very well what hearing I am talking about!"

It was Sookie's turn to be dumbfounded at that and unlike Eric, her face decidedly showed her surprise at this comment. "What _exactly_ are you talking about?"

She looked confused and flustered. She still had tears in her eyes and she was getting angrier by the minute. Whatever reaction Eric knew he should be getting from the thoughts he was projecting, this was certainly not the complete one. The blush and quickening of pulse should have been accompanied by some degree of arousal, or lust. Even he was getting faintly aroused by thinking all the thoughts and images in his head, directed at and played out with the small angry kitten of a girl in front of him. She was infuriating him and she was arousing him. _What the fuck!_

He took a mental step back to confirm his suspicion that she had not caught what he was throwing at her. "You really don't know do you? You can't hear what I am thinking."

Sookie finally understood what he was going on about and she immediately felt threatened. _How the hell does he know? Only gran, Jason and Tara knew, and now, Bill. _She did not have to think twice on this one. Sookie knew the other three wouldn't sell her out. So Bill had decided to gossip like an old lady with his Sheriff. Curiously, this detail angered her much more than the said Sheriff's intrusion. A part of her annoyance surreptitiously shifted to her boyfriend.

Coming to actually think about it, part of her riled up nerves were coming from her proximity with the huge vampire sitting on her small bed. The whole room looked shrunk a bit with him sitting there. A very uninvited memory of the first time when she saw this cold, hard, handsome face, in a bar full of creeps, came back to her. _No, don't go there…stick to anger…anger is good! _She silently reprimanded herself and decided to tread carefully and took the easiest route for her – honesty.

"I can't hear vampires."

"At all?"

"At all…You people are absolute voids to me."

Eric chewed on it for a moment. "What about the others?"

"What others?"

"Other apart from humans and vampires? Can you hear them?"

"I don't know what you are talking about."

Eric sighed with mild annoyance and tried again, "Can you hear your boss? Sam Merlotte?"

Sookie was really not expecting to hear this. Sam Merlotte was the owner of the little bar and restaurant "Merlotte's" where she worked as a waitress. He looked normal enough, though she tried to stay away from his thoughts. Sam had a secret little crush on Sookie and no way was she going to encourage or even listen to his thoughts. _But _w_hy is this stupid vampire talking about Sam? What has Sam got to do with anything? He doesn't even know the extent of my craziness yet!_

Eric waited patiently for her to answer. "Well?"

"What about Sam? He is just my boss and an occasional bartender." She said, confused.

"But can you hear him?"

This got Sookie thinking. She could hear Sam a bit, but it was different and not very clear. It was more like Sam thought in pictures and emotions rather than words and sentences.

She answered carefully, "Some people are different than others. Most people think in words and sentences. A few, like Sam, think in pictures and emotions."

The conversation was going weirder by the minute. In the twenty six years of her life, this was the first time she was discussing her crippling flaw with a total stranger. Weirder still, the stranger was listening with rapt attention, asking questions and curiously seemed to actually believe her crappy secret. It didn't help a bit that the stranger was a beautiful beautiful man, n_o vampire! Sookie shook herself again, mentally…_

Eric stowed all this information in his head, for future use.

"Can you control it? The hearing?"

"Like what?"

"Like turn it off or on?"

"It is not a freaking light bulb!"

Inspite of the sarcasm, she looked mournful at that bit and out of nowhere, Eric felt a pinch of pity for her. "So you keep hearing things people are thinking, all through the day, without any choice from your part, and cannot switch it off?"

"I try not to pay attention…But I am mostly unsuccessful with that." She was still a tad mournful. It was better when she had been angry. Of all the feelings humans indulged in, he could do anger very well. Eric saw the small drops of leftover tears on her face. He could tell they were warm. He wanted to taste her tears.

Eric did not like the direction his thoughts were taking. He needed to get her angry again. "Well then dear Sookie, no wonder they call you crazy!"

He smirked and was gone before she could even give him the benefit of a snort. Gone means, freaking vanished! She gasped belatedly and looked around for any sign of him. Her window was open. She got up and looked out, but could not see anything in the dark. She could still clearly feel a void across her yard, which had not moved all evening. _Freaking infuriating annoying vampires!_ Angry, embarrassed and addled like hell, she shut the window with a bang and stomped across her bedroom to go downstairs to Jason.


	8. Chapter 8: While You Were Sleeping

Eric flew out of the window, into the cool full moon night and laughed aloud.

_So here is a telepathic human who smells like heaven, shows him visions of his homeland, knows him in her sleep, sighs at his touch (again in her sleep), calls to his blood like a fucking siren, is not scared of a big bad vampire in her bedroom, gets all riled up in a split second and puts up a fight… on her bed… in the said room… with the said big bad vampire…Fucking fantastic!_

He knew Bill was standing outside and waived to him with a smug smile when he came out the window_, of her bedroom! _Bill hissed and sputtered a curse and Eric laughed again. It just got better and better. In fact _it_ had turned from rotten to divine in fifteen short minutes with Sookie. Before those fifteen minutes, he had been anxious and doubtful about so much after he got to know about her telepathy. Most of all he was seriously concerned about the fact that if the girl could read vampires, she could be a huge threat and he would have to kill her before Sophie Ann or anyone for that matter used her against him. But she could not read vampires, _though she could rile and fuck them up plenty_, he smirked at himself.

She really was a handful. He knew she was being honest. He could feel it within her. He could feel it, on account of the one stray drop of his blood she had innocently ingested when he was practically gagging her. He didn't mean to do it and she sure didn't mean to bite him. But the complete frat house party that was going on within his undead body right then, did not let him regret it. The official reason for the said euphoria would be to build a tie with a valuable asset of his area and for lie detection during the questioning. The real reason? … Well he was still working on why the small tie felt so damn exquisite!

..

* * *

..

"Jason?"

Jason jumped at the sound, "_JESUS CHRIST_ Sook! You are awake?"

Jason practically pounced on her and held on to her tightly. "Jeez, when did you wake up? How did you? Let me go wake up Gran…"

_Why is everything so weird today? Eric in my bedroom and Jason raving… and he sure hasn't hugged me since we were teens…OK so what the hell?_

Sookie had to be a bit loud to get it across. "Jason Stackhouse! What has gotten into you?"

So Jason got louder, "Hell Sook! You just woke up after _two weeks_ of coma…We didn't even know you were gonna _wake up or not_…A man's gotta right to be happy or not?"

"WHAT?"

"What what?" If it was possible for Jason to look even more clueless than he usually looked, then this was definitely one of those moments.

Sookie was practically shouting now, "What _coma_ Jason? And _two_ weeks?"

The brother and sister stared at each other. Slowly the wheels in Jason's head turned and he sank back on the couch from the effort, "My God Sook, you lost your memories!"

"Snap out of it Jas! My memories are just fine…Just what are talking about?"

He patted the couch space on his side and gave her small smile and a frown, like only Jason could manage, "Sit down! What do you remember?"

"I went to that vampire bar Fangtasia with Bill. I may have had a fight with him or something. Maybe I am confused from drinking, but I do not remember drinking much." Sookie slowly got on to Jason's mood and toned down a little. "What happened, Jason?"

"A bombing is what happened! That bar you went to was attacked by some mindfuck church guys. The cops still don't know shit about what actually exploded inside though. It has been all over TV since two weeks, vampires and church folks fightin' and debatin' like a bunch of cackling hens!"

"Oh my God!"

"Yeah…so after you were rescued by the cops and all, gran got a call from the big hospital in Shreveport that you were in an accident and had been taken there. So gran called me and went there and you were passed out. Gran was so scared! Heck, the old timer would have passed out herself if I weren't the man of the family!"

Sookie rolled her eyes at that. Jason could not even fool himself, let alone his sister or the townspeople. Everyone knew who the man of the Stackhouse family was and it sure wasn't Jason. But she felt very sorry for gran. She should not have been put through the wringer.

Jason was carrying on, in full report/town-gossip mode now, "So the owner of the attacked bar, the big blond scary vamp", Sookie's ears pricked at that and she didn't have to think twice about who Jason was pointing to, "got all doctors and shit working on you and they did a lot of stuff but you wouldn't wake up. They were all pretty scared of the vamp though. I am sure they could have done something if they weren't being scrambled on a skillet by the vamp. But on the fourth day, we were told that you were respondin' and all and _Jesus_ was that swell!"

Sookie was staring at Jason now, trying to dig her memories of all that Jason was saying. "But that's four days Jas…What was that about two weeks?"

"Oh yeah, you were still in coma and started getting scary fits. Then the doctors would call the blond vamp and they would do somethin'. I was dead against vampires around you when you were unconscious and all and _hell_ I put up a fight but gran didn't let me fight with them. She sure knows something I don't! Do you believe that?" Jason actually scowled at that memory!

Sookie was just staring in disbelief at all of that information.

So Jason carried on, "So couple of days later gran had a talk with the evil vamp and they shifted you back home. I put up a fight for you sis but gran was so hell bent upon it, she didn't listen to me. So they got you shifted here with their hospital stuff and drips and what not. That was yesterday night. Gran told me to go home but I sure as hell wasn't leavin' my baby sister anywhere near a vamp. I sure as hell stayed put. The vamp called up some other doctor and wouldn't let us talk to the new one. They closed the door on us! _Can you believe that_?"

Jason huffed and Sookie silently nodded for him to go on.

"So then next day you wake up and give me a heart attack. What the hell? Whatever they did, at least I… uh… we have you back now!" he beamed.

"So you say that I was shifted back home and then I was ok?"

"Pretty much!"

They sat in silence, all thought of waking gran up gone from Jason's fickle mind. He was only feeling thankful that his sister seemed ok and was sitting with him. Whatever shit he could pull, he loved Sookie and that was that.

However Sookie's mind was in turmoil. She was shocked and confused and was furiously trying to remember whatever she could. That was till she remembered an important part of the whole story.

"Jason, did Eric get me doctors and treatment in Shreveport?"

"Yeah so? It was his bar that got you injured!"

Sookie rolled her eyes again, "Jas he didn't have to do that. He didn't have to come visit. Bill told me he is some old powerful evil vampire. He really didn't have to do anything for us. And that reminds me, where was Bill the whole time? You haven't mentioned him!"

"Really Sook, that one is even shittier than the other shitty vamps! Out of all the two weeks, he came just once, on your last day there and made crazy faces at the blond one."

"His name is Eric."

"It won't do me any good to know vamper names! I sure am good without having to keep track of their names. Just call them monster1, monster2 and the like…" and he actually stuck his tongue out.

Sookie grimaced before admonishing her grown up baby brother. "I owe him my life Jas. It has nothing to do with being a vamp or a human. From what you tell me, my boyfriend didn't even show while I was in coma for two weeks and a stranger got me treated and took care of me. The least you can do is be civil about decent folk, in this house."

"You sound like gran!"

"You sound like reverend Steve Newlin."

"Hey his wife is hot!" Jason winked.

"Ughh… now you sound just like Jason."

"You still sound like gran."

It was Sookie's turn to huff at her brother in frustration, "Just drink your beer. I am tired and feel all clammy. I think I will go have a shower."

"Wait! You got to tell the folks that you are ok now. Sam's been calling like crazy, four or five times a day and came to the hospital a couple of times."

"AWW Jason I completely forgot about him and the bar. Arlene was sick that week and he was counting on me for all the extra shifts."

"Don't go worrying about it now. I told him we'll call when you are all right and you can't serve beer in a coma!"

Sookie gave up, "But I am sure you can drink beer in a coma and be as stupid as you are! Look Jas it is almost three in the morning and gran must be tired out of worry and all house chores so don't wake her up. I'll just take a shower and then eat something. Just stay put."

She ignored the slight hurt look Jason gave her for the _stupid _comment and left her brother watching TV. Then she headed straight to the hall bathroom for a much needed shower. Sookie quickly stripped and stepped into the inviting hot water. Man did she need that water right then! She had so much to think about. The shower was her personal get away when things became too much to handle. That, and sunning religiously. There was no sun, so the shower would do very well instead. Tomorrow she would face everything that needed to be understood and faced up to. Right now, she just faced the shower head, closed her eyes and let the water wash over her in hot, relaxing waves and tried her best to not think about all the load of information crashing about in her head. Eyes still closed, she grabbed her honey and lavender scented body wash and slowly worked up a good lather. On her arms… shoulders… breasts… stomach… oh that felt good! She had finished with her legs, when a deep sensual voice whispered in her ear from behind her, "Can I help with the back?"

* * *

Any guesses who that is :)


	9. Chapter 9: I have to be with him

A deep sensual voice whispered in her ear from behind her, "Can I help with the back?"

Sookie froze..._Standing in the shower, breathing down her exposed neck and whispering things like that? Damn I'm in trouble…_

She didn't open her eyes, she didn't turn, she couldn't move a muscle. Even her breathing stopped for a moment. Then she let out the breath she was holding and smiled slightly, "Eric!"

Her whisper sounded loud between the two.

Eric touched a fingertip to the nape of her neck and slowly, excruciatingly, ran it down her spine. His finger burnt a path down her back, in its wake. She still hadn't moved an inch, fearing that if she did, the bubble might break and this moment might end.

It was that evening in Fangtasia all over again where everything ceased to matter and it was only him touching her, with his eyes, his breath and his fingertip. There could be a million doubts in her mind right then, a million questions. But Sookie lost herself. There in the steady rain of her shower, surrounded in mist from the heat, she stood still, sharing more than a moment with the vampire who called to her soul.

_I have to be with him. _

The thought crashed on her and she gasped, momentarily breaking the spell, and turned around to meet his heated gaze…

Sookie awoke with a start to uncomfortable cold water pouring over her from the shower. She was sitting in the bathtub, her back to the wall and dazedly realized that she had fallen fast asleep right there. She quickly turned off the water and hurried to dry herself. She was cold and shivering by the time she finished with dressing up in pajamas and hurriedly brushing her hair and teeth. The warm bed looked very inviting. _Forget the snack then! I'll eat tomorrow._

_.._

* * *

_.._

An hour later, Sookie lay still on her back, snug in her bed, hands on her stomach, knees up, staring at the ceiling, with a riot of feelings within her. Her heart raced ahead and her mind scrambled to follow. So she'd been with Bill for a couple of weeks, kissed him thrice, went out on a date two times and he had tried to spend some time with her every night before she slept off. The time had been chaste, on gran's porch, on a swing. Some days she let him hold her hand. That was the sum total of all the romance in her life since the last twenty six years. Sometimes she caught a look of want in Bill's eyes, before he wiped his face. She had wanted to reciprocate, but could not bring herself to it. She wasn't scared of him, but could not open up to him. This struggle between Bill's need and her own doubts had been going on inside her head since some time now. She had thought she would gradually ease into the new relationship and was counting on Bill to be the gentleman, counting on her relationship to be a sedate and gradual build up, like it is supposed to be.

All of that reliable and predictable pace came to a rude halt when this dream crashed upon her like a tidal wave, and brought a tangle of emotions and desires she did not know existed. Sookie was swept in that tide and scrambled to find something to hold on to.

Eric had completely disarmed her when she looked at him for the very first time in his bar. But hadn't he just made it amply clear a couple of hours ago where she stood with him? He called her crazy Sookie, just like everybody and she smarted from that. Even after hearing it for twenty six years from just about everyone, hearing it from Eric made something hurt in the pit of her stomach and she didn't like it. She was convinced she was out of his league but did he have to call her that? No, he didn't!

_So why do I keep thinking about Eric anyway? He is like all of them, just prettier. Bill is a good person. He respects me, cares for me and is a complete gentleman. He never calls me crazy in spite of all my weirdness. We are going to turn out fine, Bill and I. Even Gran is kind of fond of him since he talked to her friends at their Confederate meeting. _

Could she imagine Eric doing anything like that? She rolled her eyes at herself even for thinking it.

_Wait a second, why am I comparing Eric to Bill again?_

She turned to her side and chewed her lip to keep a grin from building up.

_Ok Stackhouse, don't get ahead of yourself!_

She made an effort to count her blessings with Bill. She had felt like a rejected retard all her life. Bill was the first man, vampire, to have took the time to get to know her and showed interest. He was the first person she had ever kissed. She sure felt wanted when he kissed her. She concentrated on that feeling. _What would it feel like to have him kiss elsewhere?_ She didn't know the answer to that question and had no previous notes to compare. _Nothing except … _Her hand went involuntarily to her lower back, following the burning trail Eric had left in the dream. Sookie sighed at the memory. _One fingertip! Just one bloody fingertip and he… No! Don't go there! Think about Bill. Bill is safe, reliable…_

Did she want safe and reliable? _Yes._

Was she content with safe and reliable? _Well I better be…_

Sookie cringed at the vague answer her mind had come up with. _God! I am in so much trouble!_

Unable to lie down any more, she sat up and pulled her feet under herself to sit cross legged, leaning her back comfortably on the back of the bed. She looked at the place where she had found the most gorgeous man ever, sitting, playing with her hair and staring at her when she woke up. In her eyes, it was the most exciting moment of her life, Bill or no Bill. _So, here goes again…_

Was she attracted to Eric? _Hell yes._

Could she remain with Bill after this realization? Well even asking that in her mind certainly looked like cheating to Sookie.

Would she want something with Eric? _What red blooded woman wouldn't?_ She smiled wryly at that thought and caught herself from again thinking ahead of herself.

_He is miles ahead of my league…has the most beautiful women throwing themselves at him…he is obviously rich and powerful…he must have been with countless women…if he were to even look at me, what would I have to offer?_

Despite her usual confident self, she knew, considering everything, that they were not a match made in heaven. She may look at him from a distance, like at some movie star, but to hope he would be interested in her looked laughable in the least.

Her eyes drifted to that spot on her bed and she scooted over to gently touch it. She practically caressed her bed, as if she was caressing the object of her dream instead.

_He did save me though. Jason said so. I'll ask Gran more about it. Jason said he came a couple of times to check on me. That should be something._ She was again frustrated at her lack of memory of that time._ If only I could remember it, I would have some moments to keep with me, out of the whole fiasco._

What would she do with those memories?_ I'll treasure them. Then when someday I am dead beat in life, maybe I'll have a little something to turn back to, to keep me warm on a cold night. I'll thank Eric all my life for them._

A voice was growing inside her, little by little, growing in weight and sense. It had asked her the most important questions this evening. It made everything make sense. It told her that Eric had saved her in some way. He might despise her, disregard her, make fun of her, but doing so, in a way, he had maybe left a part of himself with her, to cherish._ I should thank him. Tomorrow I'll try to find how I can thank him._

That thought settled her over frenzied mind and she took a deep calming breath, huddled under her covers and drifted to sleep.

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_**My dear dear readers, thank you for your continuing support and for sharing your great reviews...:)**_

_**Although I know where I want to take this story, I am keeping the buildup slow as this is a very new, albeit a very rewarding experience for me. **_

_**Thank you so much for reading and inspiring me to keep writing...**_


	10. Chapter 10: Plots and Plans

******Forgive the delay in updating the chapters. From here on out, the plot keeps thickening and I need to be more thoughtful about the story… I have been having a couple of busy workdays but I make sure to write something everyday. But keep reviewing and pointing out the important stuff :) :)**

**A few readers have raised their dissatisfaction on why Sookie got all antsy for Eric when they talked in her bedroom. The reason why I wrote her to be antsy was very straightforward. At that time Sookie didn't know she was waking up from a two week long coma. She didn't expect anyone to be sitting on her bed in the middle of the night, let alone a vampire. She was hearing Eric's voice for the first time so she didn't recognize him at first. When he came near enough and the moment she realized it was him, Eric was already in full interrogation through intimidation mode which made her even more irritated at his unwelcome presence. Halfway through however, she maturely decides to have an honest conversation which is some improvement for her.**

**Anyways dearest readers out there, for the record, I totally belong to team Eric and would do my best for my favourite characters. Thank you for continuing to read. I soooooo want to dish out some lemons but it is too soon for that and a good buildup is necessary for the full impact of such a scene.**

**Love you all and enjoy…**

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Sookie slept peacefully, dreamlessly. The whole house was quite, the only sounds were those of the night. The two silent watchers took it all in, from their perch up a tree overlooking Sookie's bedroom window.

"Do you feel the verve my love?"

"Oh yes Loch. It is hard to miss. What is it?"

"It is not any magic I know. And it is far beyond anything humans would be able to manage."

"Goblins? Elves?"

The first watcher scoffed at that, "My dearest Neave! Goblins and elves can hardly match us fae in strength."

Neave took another sniff and waved a hand in the dark. The wave produced a few gold sparkles that died down in a second.

"It does not mix with our magic. It doesn't reveal itself."

"We should seek the king then. We have all that we could find out. The king would know."

They silently nodded at each other and dropped silently to the ground. They quickly made their way back inside the cemetery and popped out of sight, leaving a gold sparkle that hung the air for a second and then died out.

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Sophie Ann Leclerq, vampire queen of the state of Louisiana, paced her day room thoughtfully. It had been two months since she sent her procurer to get her the telepath she had come to know about. Assets like that had to be secured as soon as possible.

So she sent her pompous procurer to immediately get her the girl. The fact that Sookie could not be glamoured had been a blow and they had to rethink strategy to lure the girl to her New Orleans palace in some kind of willing state for her to be utilized to satisfaction. That led to the time waste of Bill trying to woo the backwaters belle and cost her all legal mish mash of getting Bill Compton the possession of his ancestral home. _More waste of time._ What had that got Sophie Ann? A big null so far.

_Sookie will be dead if we go on by Bill's glacial speed!_

The pompous ass reported about Sookie, told her about the life of Sookie, bored her with the sorry ass courtship till she balked…_But why the hell doesn't he fucking get her here? _She was fast losing faith in her minion. The Stackhouse girl was too valuable to waste any more time. What if someone else got wind of her? What if someone else decided to procure her instead?

And most of all, what if Eric put two and two together? _No… no… no… I can't have that happening! _

Eric was Sophie Ann's strongest sheriff and the most dangerous competition. Although she was loathe to admit it, but Eric was too smart for her. She had a suspicion that Eric had a lot going on under her nose, without her approval. But she could do absolutely nothing because of all the dirt he had on her. For the millionth time, she huffed in exasperation and thought aloud, "How does he do that?"

_Eric is too dangerous, too strong and too smart for his own good. He can't get to her telepath. He already suspects. He is showing too much interest. I need to act._

Sophie Ann thought at her beloved second "_Andre_?"

"_Sophie, my queen!_"

"_You need to get me the telepath. We can't wait."_

"_The procurer?"_

"_Be creative. He gets on my nerves already."_

"_With pleasure my queen."_

The queen sighed contentedly. About time someone did something about Sookie Stackhouse!

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"Bobby how is the rebuilding of Fangtasia going?"

"Crews are working day and night on a double shift sir Mr. Northman. They are confident of completing the whole work in about two weeks. I have made appointments for all department inspections once the rebuilding is done. They will all be done in three more days. I understand Mistress Pam will be looking into redecorating the place as soon as they have a base structure?"

"Yes. Make sure the staff and crew is paid before time to keep them enthusiastic. What of the work in the church?"

"They were told that the new owners are getting the gas and water pipe work relayed. A crew started on the basement today."

Eric pulled a business card from his desk and tossed it on the table in front of his day man Bobby. "Contact this guy and make sure he completes upgrade of the surveillance server tomorrow morning. Tell him to email the information on _all the updates_ directly to me."

Bobby was used to Eric's dealings and understood very well that this information was not meant for his ears and that is why it was going directly to Eric. He did not feel anything for it. The less he knew, the better it was for his own life and security. He just nodded. 'Anything else master?"

"Yes. Keep tabs on the police investigation on Fangtasia bombing. Get me an appointment with Cataliades as soon as possible."

"Yes sir."

"That's all."

Bobby left and Eric turned to Pam with a raised eyebrow and a mock official expression. "Where's dinner?"

Pam made a face and replied with a matching mock expression, "On the way _sir Mr._ _Northman_. She is quite lovely and exotic. Are we dining together?" Pam looked slightly leery at that.

Eric rolled his eyes and went back to his email, "Get your own cookies Pam."

Pam left with a parting smirk and Eric opened the Fangtasia surveillance video from the night of the bombing and replayed it. It was fast becoming a routine for him. Nothing really missed his keen eyes the first time he watched the footage. He knew everything of importance in that video in minute detail. Ostensibly he hoped to get a new insight on what could have happened. Sookie's presence in it just made watching all the more entertaining. He smiled and settled down to watch.

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	11. Chapter 11: What a beautiful Morning

Neave and Lochlan waited patiently for their turn to speak with their king. At last they were summoned to his office for a private word. Once in, both the fairies bowed very low in their courtesy, before looking up at their king.

Niall Brigant, king of the sky and water fae and high prince of the sky fae, looked neither old nor young. He had piercing blue eyes, silver hair that did not give away any sign of age and taut skin that sparkled at an angle. His whole being radiated power, wisdom and cunning in equal quantities. To the unprepared, the fairy king was scary in the least. Few could look directly in the eye of the most important royal of the sky fae and most just kneeled at his feet without ever even looking into his eyes.

Niall was sitting in his study and looked at Neave and Lochlan with interest. They were water fairies and his trusted investigators and enforcers. Even among the most ruthless fae, they had a reputation of being especially barbarous and brutal with those who had the misfortune of falling into their hands. Two days back they requested an audience with him, in private. That was rare, as the two liked to brag and whatever their exploits, they always went for a crowd to relate their adventures. Private words meant something they couldn't understand and wanted help with, which did not happen usually.

"What brings you here Neave? Lochlan?" Niall gave each of them a level look.

Lochlan took half a step forward and cleared his throat before speaking. "My Lord, we have come across something that needs to be attended to. Fifteen human days back, there was an attack on a vampire business establishment, not far from our main portal to human world. The attack is inconsequential. It was a pity no vampire was killed." Both Neave and Lochlan grimaced at that. "We were in the area and the attack was carried out by human scum, even more worthless than the usual. They managed to kill only one human."

"Is that worth my time Lochlan?"

Neave jumped in at that, "It gets important later lord, because right after the one puny explosion, there was another one, a light explosion, which was very powerful and attracted our attention. We felt it like a wave of energy in the air. We thought it came from some fae, because we have known only the sky fae capable of powerful white light bursts that are as powerful as the one we felt."

Niall's interest spiked a little at that.

"We thought this was some fairy attacking some vampires and went there to join the fun and eliminate witnesses." Neave hesitated after that and Niall had to prompt.

"So was it some rogue fae who is trying to start a war? Did you take care of them?"

Lochlan replied in a very serious tone at that, "We found no fae there lord, not even a half fae or a hybrid! What we found was not fae magic at all."

_This was strange…_

"Did you find the source?"

Neave and Lochlan looked at each other and then turned to address Niall, "We believe it comes from a creature in the guise of a human female. It's name is Sookie Stackhouse and she lives in a farmhouse with her grandmother Adele Stackhouse, right on the edge of the cemetery that contains our portal."

"The grandmother?"

"Is human my lord. We did not find any birth records for Sookie Stackhouse. She calls herself human but does not have the aura of a human. She has no worthwhile education to speak of and works as a barmaid. The small town is convinced she is crazy. The family is poor my lord. And there is another thing we suspect."

"Which is?"

Neave and Lochlan shifted a bit in discomfort and cleared their throats, as if not sure how to spell out whatever it was that they were trying to say.

Niall cleared his throat, prompting them to speak up.

Neave continued, "They are occasionally visited by another human male they call Jason Stackhouse, who claims to be Sookie's brother. He looks human and does not show any spark."

Niall gaze suddenly increased in its piercing quality at that, "Spark?"

When Neave remained silent, Lochlan jumped in, "We found traces of fae blood in him and prince Fintan's essence around the place my lord. We suspect Prince Fintan has some blood relationship with the family."

Niall knew his son Fintan and his obsession with the human race very well. He also knew of his son's indiscretions with a human female Adele Stackhouse. It was quite possible he sired an offspring with her. Neave and Lochlan only confirmed that story. So Adele had two grandchildren, one of which, the boy, had fairy blood in him and the other had no legal human records and no visible fae essence. His investigators didn't need to know about the bastard half fae descendants of his son, so he steered the conversation in the other direction.

"What of this Sookie? You say she is not human. And you say she does not have the same trace of fae in her blood, like her brother?"

"Yes my lord, and we could not place her essence. She is not any part fae. We have not come across such an energy signature before."

Neave supplied further information, "The aura that surrounds her is not fae magic. It is not human witchcraft or demon magic. We did spells to reveal the true nature of the creature but found nothing. Our magic did not reveal anything special around but something is there that does not sit together with our magic and simply bypasses it on another plain."

Niall nodded thoughtfully. All further details the two fairies provided were mundane and inconsequential. They finished reporting and were dismissed. Niall could tell he would need to meet with his council on the matter of this Sookie Stackhouse. According to his investigators, she wasn't fae, witch, demon, shifter, elf, goblin or any supernatural creature they knew about. They needed to know what she was and they may have to remove her before she caused any further disturbance. Her proximity to the fae portal and the one vampire Niall needed to keep an eye on was disturbing. He decided to discuss the matter with a few close councilors and act as soon as possible.

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Sookie woke up with bright sunlight streaming through the drapes on her windows and the wonderful aroma of frying bacon wafting around her. What a beautiful morning!

She practically skipped out of bed, hurriedly brushed her teeth and hair, washed her face and ran towards the kitchen. Adele saw her coming half way and dropped the metal spatula she was holding to turn the pancakes. Sookie ran and hugged her gran.

Adele just shut her eyes to stop her tears of joy from showing and hugged her granddaughter back. "Oh honey! Jason told me you woke up last night. Thank the good lord for answering my prayers…I wanted to bring your breakfast to your room. Are you ok? How do you feel? Are you hungry?" She went from teary gran to nurse gran in seconds and Sookie smiled.

"I feel perfect gran. If Jason hadn't told me, I wouldn't even know I was waking up after two weeks last night. I am fine."

Adele looked relieved and concerned and fussed about to get Sookie settled in for a good hearty breakfast. She hadn't realized how much Sookie's coma had affected her. Last two weeks had been a blur of hospital visits, worry, taking calls from friends and other townspeople, then worry and a growing pain and restlessness for her beloved granddaughter. She hadn't once slowed down to miss her daily life and small routines with Sookie. Now that Sookie was healed, Adele realized much she had been affected when they missed out on their quaint shared life of home cooked meals, chatter, sitting in the sun or reading a book together.

After a breakfast full of thanks and praises to God by gran and eye rolls by Sookie for being pampered to death, the two women cleaned their dishes and Sookie wiped out the kitchen counters while Adele fixed sweet ice tea for them to sip on while they sat in the sun. Both women settled comfortably on the sunny porch of the old house, Sookie on the swing, Adele on the beaten down lounge chair, with glasses of cool refreshing ice tea.

"Child, are you quite sure you don't want to head over to your doctor for a check-up?"

Another eye roll, "Gran! I am fine. I feel fine. I don't even have a sleepy head like most days. I don't want to see a doctor."

However Adele was very adamant. After half an hour Sookie acquiesced that she will let gran take her to the doctors in Shreveport if Sookie so much as felt a tingling in her head. Well at least that was something and Adele had to compromise on that.

"So what do you want to do today?"

"I guess I'll call Sam and ask if I still have a job. Did you meet him when I was, uh, unconscious?"

"Sam is your true friend Sookie. He came to visit you most days and always brought daisies for you. Didn't have much to say but he watched you with so much concern. If my old eyes are right, he really does care for you."

Sookie sighed. She knew too well that Sam had had this crush on her since forever, but she did not feel anything but friendly and things just remained on a status quo between the two. She worked for him and he kept his respectful distance. She might not even suspect anything if she hadn't heard his thoughts now and then. But as long as Sam kept his thoughts to himself and treated her with respect, she was fine with the way things were going. Bon Temps didn't have a lot of job opportunities, let alone for someone who didn't have much of an education to show. And she needed to work.

"We are good friends, gran. We respect each other and he looks out for me at work, just like he does for all the other waitresses. It is really easier this way. I am sure he is a very good man and whoever he ends up with will be a lucky person, but I can't look at him like that, even if I try."

Gran nodded and smiled at her. "I trust you child. You are young but you have seen and heard much. I am sure whatever you do with your life, you will always do it for the right reasons. Whatever people may say my dear, you always make your old gran proud."

Hearing that made Sookie tear up a bit and just stood up and hugged the older woman again.

"I love you gran."

"I love you too honey. I missed you. Now finish up your tea and I'll go get you another glass. It is really warm and sunny today." And Sookie settled down, thankful for her gran's pampering.

Sookie called Sam in the afternoon and the guy was so relieved, she could feel his happiness right through the phone receiver.

"You know you don't have to ask about your job cher. Of course you can come back any time. But are you sure you want to start so soon? Why don't you rest it out for a couple of days. Arlene, Lafayette and the new girl Holly are managing the work and I put in shifts as a full time bartender, so Terry can help with the cooking and cleaning. Just make sure you are well."

"I am quite alright now Sam. Thanks for adjusting but I really want to come back to work as soon as possible. Gran really needs my help to keep us afloat. You know how it is."

"Hmmmm…Well Arlene has a date tonight and will be leaving early. I still haven't contacted Holly to make up for the extra time. If maybe you could come for one or two hours…?"

"That's great Sam. I'll be there. I can help with the late shift too."

"Good then. Take care cher. See you in the evening."

"Take care…Bye Sam…and thanks again."

Sam huffed at the thanks and disconnected. Sookie was relieved to put a semblance of routine back to her life. She knew she could not afford to take long rests and besides, it was good to work. She liked to work and she liked Merlotte's. The job thing settled, she checked on her gran who was now snoring softly in her chair, the sun warming her back. She went up and lightly kissed her sleeping gran's forehead and went inside for a long relaxing shower. The shower involuntarily took her back to last night's dream. Sookie sighed and let herself flow in the moment of contentment.

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	12. Chapter 12: Premonition

The room was dark and deep inside the Earth. The smooth stone walls of nearly unbroken stone gave it the appearance of an underground cave. The walls formed a perfect circle. There were niches in the wall all around, at measured distances, each holding a burning torch. The torches were the only source of light and were infused with herbs causing dull white wisps of fragrant smoke, which were slowly emanating from the torches and filling the closed room. There was no visible chink in the walls or the ceiling.

A lone figure sat at the exact center of the stone floor, shrouded in a pure white flowing robe. She was old, the ancient kind of old, with sparse white hair, shriveled white skin and a tangle of deep lines of concentration on her face, around her closed eyes. She slowly started rocking back and forth. Seven shadows rose from the corners of the room and stepped forward in synchronization to make a perfect circle around the sitting crone. All of the seven were dressed in long black robes in perfect contrast with the figure in the center. They clasped hands to form a circle and started chanting. The words were unrecognizable, out of this world, as if from another time. The one in the center rocked faster now and the seven shadows started moving in a perfect circle around her, never breaking the chant.

_Suddenly the room disappeared from around white priestess, and she was transported to a meadow on a hill, in the middle of a thick clump of dark ancient trees. The night stood silent and still, as if on a brink. The meadow was awash with soft light from the full moon. The tall trees surrounded the small secluded spot overgrown with grass and brush. In the middle of the meadow, on a lone flat rock stood a figure, a woman, in a flowing white dress, her hands raised towards the sky, as if calling on to it. Her long gold hair was being caressed by the gentle wind, mixing the perfume of the spring night with her. Someone came up from behind and walked to stand beside her, a tall man, almost leveling up to the woman on the rock. They stood silently, looking towards the East. The moonlight painted them in the same soft glow, which shimmered a little on their faces. The woman dropped her hands and reached out, same as the man reached out towards her and they twined their fingers, never taking their eyes off the direction they were looking in. _

_It was time. The night grew grey as dawn took over, in all the magnificent shades of blush and the two looked on as the Sun majestically rose up._

The priestess gasped and came back to the present. A small drop of blood oozed out from her left ear and everyone in the circle was immediately aware that she was back from her meditative trance. Though their mistress could not see with her eyes, they knew she saw much more than someone with eyes could see and fathom. The witches stopped chanting and moving in the circle. They had been chanting and meditating all night and almost half of the next day. On a nod from the priestess, they bowed respectfully and slowly made their way out of the room, from a small door in a dark corner of the room. One of the seven did not make a move to leave and remained with the head bowed.

The ancient Pythoness spoke up is a raspy but high pitched voice. "Prepare the ritual. I want a word with Zisa, the queen of the Earth and Fire fae."

"It shall be done ancient one." The lone witch nodded respectfully to the Pythoness and without asking anything else, left the room.

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As Sookie finished her shower and dressed in a plain cotton tee and a pair of denim shorts, gran woke up and came upstairs looking almost apologetic.

"Bless my stars darling…I am really getting old! I slept while talking to you…"

Sookie smiled, "We have all the time to talk gran. How is the police investigation on those murders going on?"

"Oh they haven't cought the murderer yet, but Jason if off the hook for now. Apparently they found a couple of similar murders in other towns as well and they think it's a serial killer or something."

"I know I shouldn't say this gran and I am really sorry for those poor girls, but thank god for Jason."

"Yes thank god. The boy already has a reputation and this investigation was not improving things as they stand. Jason is now back to being a wild animal again. I thought maybe he could learn a lesson or something."

Sookie huffed and made a face, "Jason is pretty much Jason gran. What did you think?"

Adele winked at the girl and they both made an indulgent face for Jason.

"Oh yes there is another thing. It never came up this morning and I am really ashamed at not telling you before. You need to call Mr. Northman, uh, Eric. You need to thank him young lady and I mean thank him real proper as a lady should."

Sookie was brushing her hair with her head upside down and gran did not see her face but her eyes went wide as saucers and she broke into a silly grin at the mention of his name. _Did gran actually order me call the tall blond dream?_

"Uhhh Jason told me about how he took care of hospital and my treatment and all. I was already going to find a way to meet and thank him gran."

"He did fix up your treatment dear girl and he was so nice about it. Didn't even let me pay, saying that you were in this condition because of an attack on his place and all. Now I would not have let him do that if I had any doubts about him being the complete gentleman he is. And that is not the only reason that we should be thankful. Something happened honey, something happened with you and him and I have never heard of such a thing. You were in coma and wouldn't respond to anything and then he comes up, talking to the doctor and asking about you and all and as he does that, they get a spike in your pulse and you smile! My dear girl, after four days of not responding to anything, you actually smiled when he talked. Everybody was so surprised, Eric most of all. After that whenever your condition worsened, the good doctors would call Mr. Northman and the blessed man came every time we needed him. He just had to sit with you and talk to you, but we would never have gotten him to do it if he didn't want to. He genuinely wanted to help you honey and never once did he let me or anyone feel we owed him something for doing all of that."

Sookie was shocked at this, "Gran are you kidding me? Jason never told me any of that."

"I would never joke about that time my dear. We were really loosing hope and I cannot tell you how we were at our wits end. Then, in steps Eric, Mr. Northman, and you start getting better. I don't even know how to thank him for that."

Sookie didn't have words for all that information. _Eric Northman at my bedside … unbelievable! But I did find him at my bedside when I woke up….OH SHIT…shit shit shit…if I told gran how I talked to him when I found him in my room, she would flay me…Oh my God, he has been sitting beside me to get me better and *groan* I called him Bill! Why don't I remember stuff that really matters at the right moment when I need it…shit… how would I even begin thanking or apologizing! But he did say stuff that riled me up!_

Thankfully her gran wasn't the telepath of the two and couldn't listen to the screaming fit going on inside Sookie's head.

"Tell me everything gran!"

"Two weeks you were kept there and subjected to all sorts of tests. There was nothing wrong with you physically so it had to be some shock or mental trauma. Forgive me my love but at last I had to tell Eric about your telepathy and how you could be getting thoughts from all around the hospital with sick and dying people and all and he was such a gentleman even with that."

"So you told him about my telepathy?"

"I had to. He wouldn't have let me get you away from disturbing thoughts through any other argument. I knew it was a risk my child, but I know you inside out too. You were never comfortable with hospitals and when sick you got worse in a hospital. The only reason I waited two weeks was that we didn't know for sure that you didn't have any concussion or hidden injuries that could be treated there. It was for your best."

So gran told her all about the fight Jason put up against shifting you home and the strange dwarf Dr. Ludwig that came to check on Sookie after they got home and got her settled. She didn't seem to know that Eric had been right there in her room after everybody left. Sookie decided to keep that detail to herself in case gran wanted to know more about it.

"So my point is honey, we owe him a big bag of thank yous for all he has been doing for us. We could call him some evening for a visit, although I won't be able to cook for the dear boy!"

Sookie rolled her eyes at that, "Gran he is a thousand years old and so not a boy! Besides he is a vampire so of course he won't be able to eat your pecan pie."

"Bless my stars! Thousand years?" This time it was gran's eyes that were round as saucers.

"Yep…that's what I know."

"Wow…To live so long dear girl! Think how much he has lived through, how much he must have seen and experienced. He might as well be a walking museum or encyclopedia. We must invite him soon." Gran looked positively gleeful by this time. Not that Sookie minded the idea of inviting him over.

"Ok so if you have his phone number or something, I could call to thank him and invite him over."

"Sure I have the number. He gave it to me for emergencies." Adele went to her room as Sookie finished her hair and make-up and brought her Eric's business card. It was a thick ivory sheet with just his name and contact number in red cursives, very elegant stuff. Somehow that card in her hands made everything with Eric seem real. She could have dreamt that eye lock in Fangtasia, his presence in her bedroom and of course the shower was a dream but this card was a finite object with Eric's contact information on it. She immediately became nervous at the thought of having to call him. _Oh get a grip! You are not a teenager about to call a cute guy from school for a date to prom!_

That thought on dating yanked her back to another reality she'd been avoiding since she woke up.

"Ummm gran?"

"Yes dear girl…Something wrong?"

"How was Bill? You haven't told me anything about him. Jason said he came just once. Was he alright?"

Adele looked levelly at her granddaughter for this one. "Sookie, love, how are things between the two of you?"

"With Bill? I dunno…I mean it's fine. We did go to Fangtasia that night, I mean as a date or something. What are you asking?"

"I am asking how you feel about him."

For the life of her, she couldn't find the right words for her gran. If last night hadn't happened, she would have told gran that Bill was her boyfriend, if you could call a vampire that. But last night had happened and it had opened a lot of doors of doubt._ What do I feel for him? I thought I could fall in love with him. But do I want to try? _

Sookie took a deep breath before replying. "Gran, Bill is a good friend and I like to spend time with him because he blocks out all noise and helps me relax. I really thought I could have something more with him. But I am not really sure now. I guess I need some time to sort stuff out for myself. I missed out on just two weeks but it feels in my heart that something big has happened to me and I absolutely need to know what that is. Am I making any sense?" she bit her lip nervously. Ofcourse gran didnt need to know about the other vampire she had been thinking about.

"That's what I thought and you are making some kind of sense. Take as much time you need dear, but don't keep anyone hanging for your words. Can you do that?"

"Of course gran! I would never lie or cheat on anything. I guess then, I need to talk to Bill about this. He would not like what I have to say but I need him to know."

"That's my girl. Now, when do you have to leave for Merlotte's?"

"Oh I need to be there at around seven in the evening. We have lots of time on our hands."

"Then let us cook something nice for lunch."

The two smiled at each other and went down to the kitchen.

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	13. Chapter 13 The Trap

Niall had wanted to call on to his most trusted inner group of councilors to discuss the matter brought forth by Neave and Lochlan, but reconsidered because his younger son Fintan was closely involved with the human family and Niall didn't want that information to get around. In the end he decided to discuss it with his eldest son Dermont and his nephew Breandon. He knew Fintan's secret would be safe with these two and they were easily his most trusted councilors.

The three discussed whatever their investigators had reported at length. Niall did not have to impress the urgency of the matter to the other two. They understood the implications of everything happening in Louisiana. In the end, Niall volunteered to go to the human dimension himself and see what he found there. Truth was, Niall was really curious about his son's human liaisons and he really did stand the best chance of finding the truth about Sookie Stackhouse, owing to his great age and his experience with the unimaginable.

Niall made the decision to go pay the humans a visit that night.

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Merlotte's was pretty much like any other small town bar and eating joint. The patrons were the regular town's people who almost always ordered the same things and drank the same number of drinks every time they came. People came in, in steady streams for breakfast, lunch, dinner or evening drinks, to catch up on local gossip, to watch a game on the flat screen, or have a game of pool with buddies.

Sookie's brother Jason, who lived alone, usually ate both his meals at Merlotte's, since he was too lazy to ever wake up in the morning with enough time to spare for breakfast. He worked on a road worker crew and frankly by Jason's standards, he did a pretty good job and had stuck to it for some time now. Like tonight, he usually came in with his work group, all local guys Sookie had known since childhood. Sookie was already working and catching up when her brother came in with his friends and they settled at their usual table and ordered the usual burgers and fries and beer.

The first half an hour had been very stressful for Sookie, first because of Sam's overly concerned remarks on her return and then because she had gone out of practice on the game of deflecting people's thoughts and concentrating on what they were actually speaking out loud. But she had had years of practice and knowing what most of them usually wanted, made her ease up gradually into the grind of waiting tables, fetching orders, cleaning up and making small conversations everywhere. Everyone asked about her condition and she dished out the standard _I am much better, thank you very much for asking and looking out for my gran… what would you like to have tonight? _

The steady flow of customers kept her hands and feet very busy, and their constant chattering was almost full time work for her brain to keep her sane. It was all well until around eight in the evening. There was a mild lull in the conversations as everyone stiffened perceptibly. Sookie realized at the same time through the loud cursing from jason's mind who the new entry was. Bill walked up, as stiff as the others, and went up to a table in Sookie's area, smack in the middle of the bar.

_Oh geez! Did he have to sit in the spotlight now? And I have to have that talk with him yet. I hope the good people don't get more fodder for gossip tonight…_

Sam saw her discomfort as she came up to the bar to collect drink orders, and offered to deal with Bill.

"Thank you Sam, but it is fine. Nothing I can't handle". Outwardly she gave Sam a reassuring smile but inwardly, Sookie was putting up her best grimace and really didn't want to face Bill right then. However, she put her discomfort aside and walked up to Bill with a smile firmly pasted on her face. Bill's eyes roved all over her as she approached and he smiled up at her in anticipation.

"Hello there Bill. What can I getcha tonight?"

"My Sookie! You look radiant this evening. I was expecting you to be home." He grabbed her hand and a few diners started giving them secret looks.

Sookie gave an apologetic grin and tried to pry her hand away. However Bill held on to it. "I was feeling fine. So I decided to start as soon as you know…", and she shrugged.

"Sookie, my sweetheart, you know you needed to rest. You didn't even discuss coming back to work with me."

In addition to her discomfort at the public display of intimate words and Bill's surprising handsy behavior, Sookie got even more irritated at what Bill was implying. _Why do I have to discuss coming back to work with Bill? And what's with the "my" and "mine"? _

Sookie reinforced her fake smile and forcefully tugged at her hand, hoping that Bill would let go to avoid a scene. Bill apparently had other plans and started pulling her towards the chair beside him. Sookie got antsier and whispered, "Bill, seriously, let go. I am working here and I don't want us to have a fight in front of all these people. I am sure you know I call the shots of my life and decisions here?"

Bill just got up and started tugging Sookie to go outside with him, his hold on her hand quite rough. "Sookie lets have a chat outside." And called out to Sam on his way, "She's taking a break!" Sookie was pulled along and she turned to smile apologetically now at Sam and hoped he would understand that whatever music was about to play, would be better without an audience. Bill led her to the parking lot and then to a secluded corner towards the back of the bar, to his car and started to open the door for her. Sookie planted her feet on the ground and sharply pulled at her hand.

"What the hell are you doing Bill? For heaven's sake, let go of me! And shut that door. I am not going anywhere with you. Can't you see, I am working my shift!" Sookie was working up to quite an angry fit by then.

"Can we talk this over at my place? God Sookie, you were comatose for two weeks and I have been so worried for you. Please don't get angry at me. I just want to spend some time with you my dear. Is it too much to ask?"

_There we go again. Why does he always bring everything down to guilt trips? _

"I know you want to spend time with me Bill. But this is not the right way to go about it. I told you I am working tonight. We can talk after I finish up."

"Is the bar more important than me?"

This made Sookie really uncomfortable. Bill was a possessive and a little clingy but he was taking this too far. Maybe something was going on that she should know about.

"What's going on Bill?"

Bill flicked his gaze to his right with a pained expression. He grabbed her shoulders and looked very serious as he spoke in low tones. "I really need some time with you Sookie. I need to explain a few things and I am afraid it cannot wait. Please come with me." And he started to open the car door again.

This was getting out of hand.

"Bill Compton…You are going to tell me and you are going to tell me right now what is going on. I am not budging from here till you spit it out."

Sookie felt something behind her towards left and she was alarmed when she suddenly realized there was a void there that she had neglected to notice before because of her argument with Bill. _Vampire! _

With growing discomfort, she took a step back and tried to look back. "Bill we have company. Who is here? Do you know there is someone else here?"

Bill had the look of a cornered animal and fixed his gaze on something over her shoulder, just when someone spoke from very close to her back.

"Do we have a problem Bill?"

Sookie jumped at the sudden presence so eerily close and Bill dropped his hands from her shoulders. She immediately stepped towards the bar and turned to face the two vampires. The new vampire could pass off as a teenager but for his cold dead expression and evil eyes that leered at her body. Bill inclined his head and replied to the other one. "Nothing is wrong Andre, I assure you. Sookie and I were just about to drive back to my house to meet up with you. Sookie dear, this is Andre, my, uh, superior."

Sookie took two more steps back in panic and shook her head emphatically to make her point. "How do you do, Andre. And Bill, I told you I am not going anywhere." Too bad there was no one out here, so she kept inching towards the back door. If only she could reach the back door and just run…

The evil Andre turned to her and said in a chilly voice, "You cannot get away human! Don't even try."_  
_

_Shit! _

_.._

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_.._

Eric was lounging on a large chocolate color couch, checking his email on his phone and listening to a report from Bobby.

"The basic structural work in Fangtasia is complete and the crews will be cleaning up and starting with relaying the floor tomorrow. The church work is at initial excavation of basement right now. Both sites have double crews to work day and night. We didn't have any discomfort from the church people and they were excited with the renovations."

Eric smirked at that.

"Mr. Cataliades can see you two days from now and asked to be sent any necessary details regarding the appointment for him to prepare whatever he can in advance. He will be coming over here sir."

"Uh huh"

"The Shreveport PD is still doing the background check of all humans that were present in the bar that night. Their forensic team is still working on the evidence they found."

Eric sighed internally. He would be the first to know about any update in the investigation because of his contact inside the department. Bobby was just rambling on about what they were showing on TV.

"I know how to work with a TV Bobby."

"Huh?" Bobby did not immediately get the point.

Eric sighed again, loudly this time for Bobby's benefit. "Anything else?"

"There are talks about a new bar opening in Shreveport. Specifically a high priced strip club kind of a place. They applied for a liquor license this morning."

Anyone can open any number of bars around. It really wouldn't affect Eric because there was only one which had all the vampire attractions of the town.

"It's just another bar."

"You told me to watch out for a couple of names and see if they popped up around here. Well the list had the name 'Brigant' in it and two Brigants have been registered as the partners of this establishment."

Eric slightly straightened out at that.

"Hmmm, keep me posted. For tomorrow morning I need you to…" Eric stopped abruptly and went rigid. Pam immediately looked up to her maker, from her perch on a bar stool across the sitting area.

"Eric?"

She hadn't even finished saying his name and Eric was gone. Just like that, leaving a rush of air to derange Bobby. He really hated vampires when they did that. Bobby looked around in a confused fashion and Pam gave Bobby the benefit of her sneer. "Off you go then…Shoo…"

Eric was really acting weird these days. _He needs to get laid! _She thought sneakily and came up with a plan involving a couple of strippers.

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_Shit!_

_Shit! This is not good at all. I need to get back inside. Run Sookie run…_

"Well gentlemen I really have to get back to work. You two have a nice evening." She gave out a fake smile and turned to get back through the back entrance.

In a split second, Andre was behind Sookie again, effectively gagging her with his left hand holding a tight grip on her mouth and bit into her shoulder savagely. It happened so fast that Sookie didn't even realize what was happening to her till the time she felt a searing pain going across her body, starting from her right shoulder. Now she was truly terrified. Her instinct of self-preservation kicked in and she fought Andre's hold with all her might, all the while silently staring at and imploring Bill to help her. Andre held her like a vice.

Bill just stood there, looking sick and conflicted, but managed to squeak out, "Andre, her majesty would want her uninjured…Perhaps you should…urmm" and stopped talking awkwardly.

Andre apparently, was beyond anything. The girl's blood was too sweet, too intoxicating to let go. He was planning to just subdue her enough to teach her respect for superiors, but the moment the first drop of her blood touched his fangs, he was totally consumed by desire and couldn't stop. Sookie sagged on her knees, her legs scraping on the rough gravel and Andre knelt behind her. Her arms and legs were beginning to feel heavy as lead but she kept pulling onto her reserves to fight the vampire holding her like an iron brace. She would not be able to continue much longer.

_Help me! Please someone help me!_

_.._

The scene played out in slow motion for Eric, who was still a mile far, around fifty feet up in the air. He saw an out of control Andre draining Sookie and the witless Compton stared in horror at the scene, doing absolutely nothing. As he neared Sookie at inhuman speed, he was shocked to register the presence of a fairy at a distance, although the scent was clearly masked. _Hmm_ t_he Brigant royal! What the fuck? _Eric did not have time to find out about the fairy though.

In a split second he was directly above the back lot, just as Sookie went down on her knees and Eric felt waves of distress hitting him through the miniscule tie they shared. In that split second, Eric felt another presence close by. A very strange presence. He landed on his feet and was blindsided for a moment of total déjà vu when a familiar white light hit him again…

There was a blinding flash and suddenly Andre vanished into thin air. It was just that instant and then that presence was gone too. Sookie fell down, sprawling onto the dirt, Andre's grip no longer holding her upright.

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	14. Chapter 14: Destiny

Eric could not believe his eyes!

_What the hell just happened?!_

_She did it again…I am sure she did this…It was the same like before…What is she? What the bloody hell is she? Where is that creep Andre? I can't smell him at all! He was right fucking here! Shit! _

Eric stared at Sookie who was coughing in the dirt. Bill stared at Eric who appeared to have popped in with the light. Somewhere in the neighboring trees, a very shocked fairy king felt hell break loose in his mind as he recognized what just happened in front of him.

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Niall's thoughts were in a snarl. He knew what he saw. He felt it even before he saw it. He knew the girl Sookie Stackhouse was not an ordinary human being. He marveled at the intensity of power that had saved the girl from being drained. No one could make an old vampire disappear without a trace like that. No one…Niall looked frantically in all of his perfect memory if he could identify what he felt in his skin. It slowly dawned on him. He could practically feel a remaining crackle of the explosive light that had just lit up the night like day. It had come from somewhere far behind him in the trees. As quietly as he could, he turned and went towards the source.

..

Sookie tried to rise again and fell down. Eric caught her before her face went in the dirt again, knelt beside her and cradled her head in his large hands. He took in Sookie's bleeding shoulder and quickly decided that putting his mouth on it as his saliva healed the cuts would not be prudent. He knew how just her scent was sending him over the edge already. If he tasted her blood now, for the first time, he may put her in serious danger. He cut his finger over his fang and rubbed it over her open wound. Bill hissed as he saw Eric's blood mingle with Sookie's and her skin smoothed immediately.

Eric held Sookie's face and gently nudged her.

"Are you ok?"

She opened her eyes. "Eric?" _Oh Eric…Wait this isn't a dream_…_I was being killed! Oh thank god I am alive...baby steps Stackhouse…breath…who helped? What happened to Andre? Bill has taken root to that spot so… Eric saved me? Dang when he looks at me like that! So beautiful…Why is he so damn beautiful! And shit I am covered in mud and blood! Shit! Would I ever meet him when he doesn't have to save me or something? I am always in trouble! _She blinked her eyes and her heart did a little flip.

Eric looked deep into her beautiful eyes and fought with control. _She is so much trouble! Why did I have to fly to her rescue tonight? Now I am sucked into her little drama again and I can't turn back. Shit! Why was Andre here? Compton saw me after the flash, and I'll have to find Andre or Sophie Ann would most probably pin all blame of her favorite lost child on me in her madness...Wait, there was the Brigant nearby. He may have done this. The light seemed like that of the sky fae. I have to get to him before he pops away…Why do I want to be with Sookie right now when there is my ass to cover? Why does she look at me like that? So beautiful! Why is she so damn beautiful?_

Before his addled thoughts could confuse him anymore, Eric took control of himself and forced everything but self-preservation out of his mind. He lifted Sookie and in another second, Sookie was sitting on the ground, way inside the back entrance of Merlotte's and Eric was gone!

She could dimly see the stunned Bill Compton still standing outside, _looking like landed fish. To hell with him! He almost got me killed tonight. If it was not for Eric…_She sighed loudly as she thought about her savior and how he had vanished again before she had a chance to at least say thank you. _Why does he always have to disappear like that?_

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The Ancient Pythoness sat perfectly still in the dark and trained all her energy to the flat shallow stone basin filled with dark soil and pieces of wood, set in front of her. Opposite to her, on the other side of bowl, sat her most trusted and powerful witch Octavia, chanting a spell. The Pythoness nodded and Octavia struck a match and dropped it in the basin. A bright red flame sprung to life in the basin. Octavia closed her eyes and kept chanting her spell. The ancient one's eyes became smoky white orbs and shone red like the crackling flames in front.

A red haze started forming in the basin, in the fire. The haze spiraled and reached upwards. It started taking the shape of a face and kept rising till it was about six feet high. Then the red haze dispersed to reveal a woman standing in the middle of the flames. She was tall, as much as six feet, with flowing gold hair and sapphire blue eyes, incandescent from the fire. The queen of the Earth and Fire fae, Lady Zisa, stood at her magnificent full height and nodded at the vampire priestess sitting cross legged in front of her.

"Pythia…"

"Zisa…I had a vision. The wheels are turning. Everything is in place. Your son has found her."

Zisa's eyes doubled in shine and a brilliant smile lit up her face. Suddenly she frowned. ""We must protect them. Niall would do anything to stop them."

The Pythoness chuckled at that. "They cannot harm the girl. Her kin protect her. No one can lay hand on her without burning. You think about your plans for your boy."

"I need your help for that. I cannot enter this realm without Niall knowing about it. If he suspects anything, he will start a war."

"He is going to know about it and there is going to be a war, whatever you do. You know it. I have seen it."

"Not if the girl can do what you say she can do. Can this come to pass?"

Pythia smiled. "She may be banished from her rightful place Zisa. But just like your son, she holds great power within her. She may not remember it. She may not know how to use it. But the power would not leave her. She was made that way."

"Would she remember enough?"

"The question is Zisa, would she do what you want when she remembers?"

It was the turn of the fairy queen to smile smugly now. "Do you remember that day Pythia? The day when she was banished? When she made that choice which took all her power and all her family away from her? She chose to love him a thousand years ago when she had everything to lose. She lost everything, and then she lost Eric, whom she left everything for. Her heart still bleeds for him even though her curse doesn't let her remember. I am sure of it. She will do exactly what I want."

"Nothing is sure to come to pass. The world is always changing. All within the world constantly grow. She may choose a different path. She may walk towards her own destiny and leave the road you want her to tread."

A shadow crossed the fairy's proud forehead. "We shall see how the wheels turn."

The pythoness dipped her head at that. "Yes we shall see how the wheels will turn."

The dark room shone red for a moment and then there was just the vampire, the witch and the crackling flame of the basin sitting between them.

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	15. Chapter 15: Promise

**A big Thanks to all of you out there for reading, appreciating and reviewing my work. Your reviews have really helped me to go on...Please keep sharing your wonderful thoughts and suggestions :)**

**I am really sorry for the delay in this chapter. My only excuse is lots of work and I didn't want to do this chapter in a half hearted way. So here I change the story a bit and Sookie does not turn out to be Niall's grand daughter. She is steadily leaning towards Eric and Eric sure feels the pull too ...Go team Eric :) :) :) ...**

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Niall found nothing. The whole area was absolutely clean of magic. Neave was right. This thing did not reveal itself to fae. There were only a handful of forces in the universe that could do this. Those forces did not belong to this realm, among the humans. He searched and searched but only found a great sense of foreboding. Something was not right here. Vampires do not disappear like that. Light flashes like that do not happen without great strength. And they always leave huge marks. All signs did not just vanish in thin air like that. He was worried now. It was too much of a coincidence for Sookie Stackhouse to be in danger both the times when this force had manifested itself and this time he had been right there and still hadn't been able to catch the source.

_The girl was not the source. I would have seen it if she were. She does not smell like a human and she most certainly is not part fae. She has this verve though. There is a sure trace of this unnatural force within her. I need to get that girl watched night and day. She will lead us to the truth. But want if it took too long? Maybe putting her in danger is the key. I need to know everything before doing it though. I need an insider here. _

Niall carefully considered who could do this job, just as he felt a vampire approaching from the direction of the bar.

His work there was done and he popped out of the realm, right when Eric entered the little clearing and saw the fairy disappear into the night, in front of his eyes.

_Dang! Fucking fairies! _

Eric quickly scanned the rest of the area, all the while writhing inside to return to Sookie and make sure she was alright. But he needed to find out as much as possible to ensure she was indeed safe. Plus there was the big gaping question of a missing Andre. He found Andre's scent in traces at a particular trail, coming from the direction of Sookie's house. _Hmmm not good. _But there was no other trace of Andre going back and Andre for sure wasn't fast enough for Eric to not see where he went.

A small part of his dead heart was humming with a myriad of emotions; Caution, disappointment, alarm, anger, frustration, exhaustion…_Quite the bouquet my intriguing little Sookie!_ After another sweep he turned back to check on her.

..

Sookie stood up from the floor and watched Bill warily. He started to walk towards her but she quickly took a step back and her hands went out in front of her in involuntary defense.

"Don't!"

Bill grew alarmed at her response. "Sookie sweetheart let me explain…"

Anger faired inside her and she lashed out "Explain? EXPLAIN? Now you want to explain?"

"Sookie, Andre is my superior and is far older and stronger than I am. I could not have fought him."

_What?! All the 'Sookie is mine' and 'You are under my protection' drivel and what not, and now he tells me he cannot fight for me? Wait a minute…He didn't even try! If Eric hadn't come … _She took another step back and her eyes hardened.

"Well tough luck Bill. Now, please leave me alone." _Please go Bill. I don't want to look at you. I am dirty and bloody and drained and my legs can't carry me through another minute of this crap you are pulling at me. I have been used and violated and all the while my boyfriend stood and watched the freak show. I am so through this nonsense right now._

"But, I love you Sookie. You can't be away from me!" This time Bill strode to just outside the door and looked hurt and sorrowful.

_Oh for God sake he is looking as if he was raped, not me! Well fang raped…But he doesn't get to look all hurt and stuff! And he sure as hell doesn't get to pull the overused 'I Love you' card. Why didn't Eric rip off his pleading eyes or something! _"Bill, are you listening to me? Didn't you just see what happened outside? Just go! Right now, I don't want to talk to you. I don't want to talk to anyone. I just want to go home and curl up and cry and sleep."

"Let me take you home." Bill looked at her hopefully.

"Oh no, Bill Compton. I drove to work and I am perfectly capable of taking myself back."

"But you are hurting and incapable of driving safely right now."

_Really?_

"Really Bill? Care to guess why I am hurting? Well perhaps I'll fall dead while driving! But even then, I sure as hell will be a lot safer without you and your baby sitting. I am going inside now, to talk to Sam and get my stuff to leave. I do not want to see you when I come back. Have I made myself clear?"

Bill saw the stubborn set of her jaw and shoulders and her serious eyes. It was clear that she was in no state to have a conversation at that point. Maybe he could drop by later to check if her anger had passed and she would talk. He gave her a slight pained nod and went away. Sookie leaned a bit to have a look outside and listened around her. Hmmm Bill was gone. _Thank God!_

She was in no state to work and going to talk to Sam with bloody clothes would mean another interrogation which she could not stand. She quickly snuck to Sam's office, got her purse and jacket that were stowed in a locker and made her way towards her car. She just needed to be home. There was still a trace of adrenaline from her struggle with Andre, coursing through her body, which was not letting her to just collapse right there and cry her heart out. _No! I can't do this here. I need to get home. Ok first things first. _She took out her phone and called Sam.

"Sam I am sorry, I am not feeling well and am going home."

Sam went into alarm. "Hey Sook! What happened? You were looking uncomfortable earlier, uh, with Bill. Is he taking you home?"

_No, no more questions please. "_No Sam he left earlier. I am going on my own. I really don't feel well and need to rest. Can you please manage today without me? I can make up tomorrow."

"Please take care of yourself Sook. I told you not to come today. Just please rest ok? We'll manage here. Don't worry cher…"

"Thanks Sam…You are the best…"

..

Hovering in the neighboring trees, Eric saw her leaving the parking lot and grimaced at her car. That car belonged to the scrap yard like a year ago.

_I need to do something about it. She is not safe driving that death trap. _

Against all his centuries worth of accumulated sense, he followed her while she drove towards her home, remaining in the air and out of sight. He tried turning back, fighting his self every step of the way, telling himself that she was safe now and there was no other vampire in the vicinity. He did not need to follow her home like a guard dog. With every step of this lost battle, he grew more determined to fight the pull this fascinating girl had over him. She reached her home and Eric felt an annoying stab within him at the journey being over too soon.

_No! I cannot reach out. I am a mess right now. I need to figure this out. Somewhere where her scent is not drowning me... Bloody Hell! What am I going to do!_

With one last look at her lovely face, he tore himself from her scent which was growing on him and sped towards his home before he could do something foolish like reach out and touch her.

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Gran was away, on one of her sewing circle evenings, and Sookie felt grateful for not having to face her in her current state. She just wanted to hide herself from all prying eyes and all questions. The realization of what had happened to her out there was getting all real to her now. Before this, when she was in the lot, then in the car, her complete focus was on dealing with the now and saving the pain for later. Well now, later was here already. She made herself walk towards the bathroom, methodically strip away her soiled clothes and shoes and untie her hair. She started the shower and waited for the water to warm up. Then she stepped in the water, gave herself away to her secret retreat and let go of all control.

She cried and furiously pulled her hair out. In her frenzy to clean herself, she broke her nails and even bruised herself. To feel such helplessness! Helplessness against that no count, god forsaken vampire out of nowhere who physically brought her to her knees and she couldn't do anything to save herself.

Ah, pure agony!

The one person she turned to was a sorrier vampire than the first one. _Oh I am so over Bill Compton!_

She howled out in anger, frustration and hatred; anger at her fate for having thrown Bill Compton her way, frustration at herself for being naïve and a helpless damsel in distress and a consuming hate for Bill. She cried till her eyes were red and swollen and no more tears would come. She knew Eric had saved her, healed her shoulder but the betrayal of Bill made her head throb in pain and fury, her whole body was covered in bruises and she was one step away from breaking down completely.

_Stop it! Stop this nonsense. I won't lose myself for Bill. He came into my life posing like a dream and I trusted him like a stupid ignorant country bumpkin. Look what that trust got me. I was almost killed tonight. God, did I actually spend so much time with that creep? Thank the Lord Almighty I didn't let him do what he wanted to do. _

A lone tear escaped from her eyes as Sookie steeled herself.

"_I will never be helpless again. Never! I will find a way to protect my family and myself. If there is any such way under the sun, I swear to God I'll find it. And then I'll show these crazy ass vampires what a human can do!"_

She closed her eyes and took a steady breath. Every pore of her body vibrated with life as she made her promise again and again, to herself, to gran, to Jason, to God. Something happened to her that night which she didn't see. Slight, disjointed patterns glimmered blue and green on her forehead, shoulders and arms for a second and then went away, almost as if washed away with the water.

The water turned cold.

With utmost self-assurance, she turned the faucet shut, dried herself, dressed in fresh clothes and went to the kitchen to get something to eat.

She learnt her lesson today. One she would never forget.

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	16. Chapter 16: Good Evening Fairy

The cold night air slowly cleared Eric's head and he forced control back to him little by little.

_Right now is not the time to entertain irrational thoughts about Sookie Stackhouse. Separate the beautiful intriguing woman from her value as an asset. Because that is what she is going to be, a very valuable asset in the supernatural world. Everybody is going to be after her. Judging by the number of times Compton calls the queen and the presence of Andre in Bon Temps of all places means the Queen knows about her and wants her. So Bill must be just a tool for the queen! Even the fairies are circling. Sophie Ann must have felt Andre in trouble. She'll be calling to inquire and I better have a straight answer. I hate this shit!_

Eric reached one of his many homes that he was currently using as his office, and was greeted by a very annoyed Pam, tapping her expensive jimmy choo pumps, all worked up for a confrontation.

"You have been missing!"

He raised a tired eyebrow at his child.

"Get back to the world. Associating so blindly with a human, for the world to see? Really Eric? You get a distress SOS from your human and you just chuck everything and run to her? Your minions have started exchanging glances behind your back."

Eric had to smirk at the scolding Pam was trying to give him. "She is just a valuable human, _Mom_. I am saving an asset for my area."

"Save that smirk and your lies for your human Eric. I can _feel_ your conflict. It is weakening you and muddling your common sense. Get your act together."

Eric stopped and considered his child. Pam never acted out over his casual flings. _Casual flings?_ He started getting annoyed too. Why did everyone, including himself, have to question him about Sookie Stackhouse?

"Is something wrong Pam? Have I disregarded any business?"

"Check your phone!"

"I haven't had any calls or messages this evening."

"Yes, because it is switched off!"

_What? _He reached inside his pocket for his phone and sure enough, it was switched off, maybe died out because he hadn't charged it. Eric frowned at the blank screen and realized he was usually swamped with calls and texts but could never turn it off because of the nature of his responsibilities. He never forgot about it. _Funny to have forgotten all about it!_

"You see? Now will you listen? Oh and please call the queen. She has called like five times in the last hour."

"What… already?" S_hit!_

Now Pam raised a perfectly shaped eyebrow at his sudden alarm, silently demanding an explanation.

"Pam something happened."

"What now?"

So out poured the entire story of the evening; Sookie… Bill… Andre… vanishing Andre… Niall and some other bloody hidden presence.

"And now I don't know where Andre popped to. I can't tell her of Sookie's involvement. The bitch will have us all killed if she gets to know that Andre vanished after attacking Sookie and I was trying to save her. Damn I need to think and all I keep getting is visual replays of that lightning bolt in my head." He sat down on the couch and hung his head in his hands. "I can't think Pam. I don't know what is wrong with me."

Oh this was totally getting out of hand. "You need to calm down and call the queen Eric. Maybe Andre contacted her. You said you didn't attack him. Tell the queen as much. He is her child and not our problem. She will find him out. Whatever it is, you first need to hear her out. And stop obsessing about that human Eric or I'll kill her myself."

Eric suddenly had Pam pinned against the wall, eyes bright with anger. "You will never speak of harming Sookie!"

Pam didn't look frazzled. She was used to Eric's anger. She kept a steady gaze on his eyes till he loosened his hold. Pam straightened her dress and snapped back. "Are you done with the over reaction? I don't care who you eat Eric, just stop showing you are attached to it. Now call the queen."

Eric let her go and turned to the task at hand. He could deal with Pam later. He took a few focused breaths and calmed down. Then he called the queen.

..

An hour later, he paced his office, one hand holding his temples, the other clenched in a fist. Pam stood in the corner, watching her maker and trying to hold back her own anger and furiously working at understanding what had happened.

"Fucking Compton….l'll kill him!"

"Eric why did he say you made Andre disappear! He knows everything that happened. He was right there. What's in it for him?"

Eric kept up the pacing. "Oh yes he was there. He was right there when Andre was draining Sookie. He was right fucking there when the light struck and Andre vanished and I touched ground. He was…" Eric stopped and spun around to face Pam, a feral smile of understanding dangerously playing on his lips.

His voice became an almost caress. "So, our Mr. Compton plays!"

"What do you mean?"

"You see Pam, he wants Miss Stackhouse. The queen wants Miss Stackhouse. The queen sent Andre when Bill didn't give her up. Andre, however, came to covet Miss Stackhouse too. So he began drinking and our Mr. Compton became truly helpless because he couldn't take on Andre but how lucky for him…There I landed to save the fucking day and then lightning struck. Andre was gone, Sookie was saved. He told the queen I did something to Andre so that I'll be taken out of the equation too."

Pam gasped. "Eric the queen can give you the true death for this supposed treason."

Eric gave Pam a loaded stare. "Do you see what roads he has opened up?"

"Well Andre was the queen's most loyal second and you are the queen's most powerful sheriff."

"And the queen?"

"…Is an over-emotional bitch!"

"So with Andre, her cool voice of reason, and me, her muscle and strategist, gone?"

"She is a sitting duck!" Pam's eyes widened with alarm, comprehension and anger. "_Fucking Compton! Is he a spy?_"

Eric ticked an imaginary checkbox by flicking an eyebrow and smiled wryly. "That or he is one lucky bastard!"

..

* * *

..

Fangtasia opened with a big party on October 31st, Halloween. All the vampires of the area were present. Sophie Ann and her retinue were conspicuous in their absence. Everybody noticed it but no one said anything, not in front of the drunk human partying crowd or the sheriff at least.

Even if he didn't want to and had absolutely no time for it, Eric had to sit on his newly constructed big throne, under a spotlight. As if he needed a spotlight for people to notice him. But mentally he was not in the club at all.

He had a shit load of mess to clean up. To count his recent blessings, there was the attack on his bar, an ongoing police investigation, mysterious white explosions; a queen's missing second in command, fairy sightings and an infuriating telepath. Not to mention weird dreams and a new tie with a very emotional human; a human who absolutely refused to leave his mind, especially now that he was again sitting in Fangtasia, on a throne, under a spotlight.

Oh and the queen had decided to drag him to a trial at the vampire convention in Rhodes, to be held in a month, just out of pure spite. He might get away with five years of silvering if Andre was found before his trial, just for going against the queen's second in command. If Andre was not found in that one month, then Eric was clearly getting the true death.

He really needed his wits around him. All his spies searching for any trace of Andre, were drawing blanks. He could not go after the fairies without starting a war. He had no idea where to even start looking for the third presence he felt that evening. The only remaining path to follow with the search was Sookie. He deliberately turned away from that.

The bombing however was tying very satisfactorily to FOTS. He had all evidence for an indictment. But then again, nothing from FOTS could be connected to any sound, sonic or alternate energy weapon. Eric knew the church imbeciles hadn't actually used such an advanced weapon. But there was no way the human authorities could be explained about the big bang of that evening. The thing just hung there, nobody having any idea what to make of it. The only line of investigation went straight again to the lovely Miss Stackhouse. _What in bloody hell does she keep on doing!_

No matter which angle Eric thought about, every piece of the growing puzzle led again and again to Sookie Stackhouse. And then he couldn't think straight.

He couldn't afford to get distracted now. He could not afford time to sit down to analyze his feelings because he could not afford feelings. Feelings brought out weakness and weakness was not an option for him. Not if he wanted to survive. He had not battled through more than ten centuries to get stupidly ensnared by a woman in the end, however special she may be. Getting entangled with women always brought trouble. And loving someone more than thyself just about blasted everything. He knew this. He had seen it happen time and again, repeating like clockwork throughout history, all through his long undead life. This fascination with love and feelings had cost monarchs their kingdoms, saints their sanity and humans their minds. No point living that life if you could learn nothing from experience.

For the hundredth time that evening, he tuned Sookie out of his mind and concentrated on strategizing the cleanup of the wreckage around him.

Someone walked inside the bar and every vampire and supe present was immediately aware of her presence. Eric's attention snapped to her. She walked with the grace of a floating cloud, the crowd just melting in front of her, to give way for her to pass. She wore a form fitting silver dress, starting low on her bosom and reaching her ankles, with an enticing slit at the side that reached her thigh, showing off perfect long legs in six inch silver heels. Her straight, shining gold hair artfully left lose, formed a halo around her face. Blue eyes highlighted with heavy mascara and smoky makeup, red lips with sparkling lip gloss and not even one blemish on her skin. The humans stopped dancing and drinking and just stared. That was not just a pretty face though. A damning, mesmerizing scent of rain and sky wafted from her and every vampire in the bar forgot their true bloods. A collective click of popping fangs rang through the whole bar. _Fairy!_

She walked up to the throne and gave a slight nod to the gorgeous Viking sitting there, not breaking eye contact for even a split second.

"Eric Northman!" her voice was pure liquid, sweet and salty at the same time. "Good Evening!" she gave a seductive half smile. "My name is Claudine Crane. A word with you…" she glanced around the bar and then fixed her smoky eyes on Eric again, "in private?"

He was the last to do so and the sound of her voice combined with her scent was the last straw before Eric's fangs dropped and his sight became clouded with lust for the shining fairy in front of him.

..

..


	17. Chapter 161: Good Evening Fairy

**Hey everyone...I had some issues with uploading chapter 16 and it just wasn't showing up on the site...So now I am uploading it with the title chapter 16.1 :D...Its just a work around...I do it all the time...So this is actually chapter 16 just with a weird title :)**

* * *

The cold night air slowly cleared Eric's head and he forced control back to him little by little.

_Right now is not the time to entertain irrational thoughts about Sookie Stackhouse. Separate the beautiful intriguing woman from her value as an asset. Because that is what she is going to be, a very valuable asset in the supernatural world. Everybody is going to be after her. Judging by the number of times Compton calls the queen and the presence of Andre in Bon Temps of all places means the Queen knows about her and wants her. So Bill must be just a tool for the queen! Even the fairies are circling. Sophie Ann must have felt Andre in trouble. She'll be calling to inquire and I better have a straight answer. I hate this shit!_

Eric reached one of his many homes that he was currently using as his office, and was greeted by a very annoyed Pam, tapping her expensive jimmy choo pumps, all worked up for a confrontation.

"You have been missing!"

He raised a tired eyebrow at his child.

"Get back to the world. Associating so blindly with a human, for the world to see? Really Eric? You get a distress SOS from your human and you just chuck everything and run to her? Your minions have started exchanging glances behind your back."

Eric had to smirk at the scolding Pam was trying to give him. "She is just a valuable human, _Mom_. I am saving an asset for my area."

"Save that smirk and your lies for your human Eric. I can _feel_ your conflict. It is weakening you and muddling your common sense. Get your act together."

Eric stopped and considered his child. Pam never acted out over his casual flings. _Casual flings?_ He started getting annoyed too. Why did everyone, including himself, have to question him about Sookie Stackhouse?

"Is something wrong Pam? Have I disregarded any business?"

"Check your phone!"

"I haven't had any calls or messages this evening."

"Yes, because it is switched off!"

_What? _He reached inside his pocket for his phone and sure enough, it was switched off, maybe died out because he hadn't charged it. Eric frowned at the blank screen and realized he was usually swamped with calls and texts but could never turn it off because of the nature of his responsibilities. He never forgot about it. _Funny to have forgotten all about it!_

"You see? Now will you listen? Oh and please call the queen. She has called like five times in the last hour."

"What… already?" S_hit!_

Now Pam raised a perfectly shaped eyebrow at his sudden alarm, silently demanding an explanation.

"Pam something happened."

"What now?"

So out poured the entire story of the evening; Sookie… Bill… Andre… vanishing Andre… Niall and some other bloody hidden presence.

"And now I don't know where Andre popped to. I can't tell her of Sookie's involvement. The bitch will have us all killed if she gets to know that Andre vanished after attacking Sookie and I was trying to save her. Damn I need to think and all I keep getting is visual replays of that lightning bolt in my head." He sat down on the couch and hung his head in his hands. "I can't think Pam. I don't know what is wrong with me."

Oh this was totally getting out of hand. "You need to calm down and call the queen Eric. Maybe Andre contacted her. You said you didn't attack him. Tell the queen as much. He is her child and not our problem. She will find him out. Whatever it is, you first need to hear her out. And stop obsessing about that human Eric or I'll kill her myself."

Eric suddenly had Pam pinned against the wall, eyes bright with anger. "You will never speak of harming Sookie!"

Pam didn't look frazzled. She was used to Eric's anger. She kept a steady gaze on his eyes till he loosened his hold. Pam straightened her dress and snapped back. "Are you done with the over reaction? I don't care who you eat Eric, just stop showing you are attached to it. Now call the queen."

Eric let her go and turned to the task at hand. He could deal with Pam later. He took a few focused breaths and calmed down. Then he called the queen.

..

An hour later, he paced his office, one hand holding his temples, the other clenched in a fist. Pam stood in the corner, watching her maker and trying to hold back her own anger and furiously working at understanding what had happened.

"Fucking Compton….l'll kill him!"

"Eric why did he say you made Andre disappear! He knows everything that happened. He was right there. What's in it for him?"

Eric kept up the pacing. "Oh yes he was there. He was right there when Andre was draining Sookie. He was right fucking there when the light struck and Andre vanished and I touched ground. He was…" Eric stopped and spun around to face Pam, a feral smile of understanding dangerously playing on his lips.

His voice became an almost caress. "So, our Mr. Compton plays!"

"What do you mean?"

"You see Pam, he wants Miss Stackhouse. The queen wants Miss Stackhouse. The queen sent Andre when Bill didn't give her up. Andre, however, came to covet Miss Stackhouse too. So he began drinking and our Mr. Compton became truly helpless because he couldn't take on Andre but how lucky for him…There I landed to save the fucking day and then lightning struck. Andre was gone, Sookie was saved. He told the queen I did something to Andre so that I'll be taken out of the equation too."

Pam gasped. "Eric the queen can give you the true death for this supposed treason."

Eric gave Pam a loaded stare. "Do you see what roads he has opened up?"

"Well Andre was the queen's most loyal second and you are the queen's most powerful sheriff."

"And the queen?"

"…Is an over-emotional bitch!"

"So with Andre, her cool voice of reason, and me, her muscle and strategist, gone?"

"She is a sitting duck!" Pam's eyes widened with alarm, comprehension and anger. "_Fucking Compton! Is he a spy?_"

Eric ticked an imaginary checkbox by flicking an eyebrow and smiled wryly. "That or he is one lucky bastard!"

..

* * *

..

Fangtasia opened with a big party on October 31st, Halloween. All the vampires of the area were present. Sophie Ann and her retinue were conspicuous in their absence. Everybody noticed it but no one said anything, not in front of the drunk human partying crowd or the sheriff at least.

Even if he didn't want to and had absolutely no time for it, Eric had to sit on his newly constructed big throne, under a spotlight. As if he needed a spotlight for people to notice him. But mentally he was not in the club at all.

He had a shit load of mess to clean up. To count his recent blessings, there was the attack on his bar, an ongoing police investigation, mysterious white explosions; a queen's missing second in command, fairy sightings and an infuriating telepath. Not to mention weird dreams and a new tie with a very emotional human; a human who absolutely refused to leave his mind, especially now that he was again sitting in Fangtasia, on a throne, under a spotlight.

Oh and the queen had decided to drag him to a trial at the vampire convention in Rhodes, to be held in a month, just out of pure spite. He might get away with five years of silvering if Andre was found before his trial, just for going against the queen's second in command. If Andre was not found in that one month, then Eric was clearly getting the true death.

He really needed his wits around him. All his spies searching for any trace of Andre, were drawing blanks. He could not go after the fairies without starting a war. He had no idea where to even start looking for the third presence he felt that evening. The only remaining path to follow with the search was Sookie. He deliberately turned away from that.

The bombing however was tying very satisfactorily to FOTS. He had all evidence for an indictment. But then again, nothing from FOTS could be connected to any sound, sonic or alternate energy weapon. Eric knew the church imbeciles hadn't actually used such an advanced weapon. But there was no way the human authorities could be explained about the big bang of that evening. The thing just hung there, nobody having any idea what to make of it. The only line of investigation went straight again to the lovely Miss Stackhouse. _What in bloody hell does she keep on doing!_

No matter which angle Eric thought about, every piece of the growing puzzle led again and again to Sookie Stackhouse. And then he couldn't think straight.

He couldn't afford to get distracted now. He could not afford time to sit down to analyze his feelings because he could not afford feelings. Feelings brought out weakness and weakness was not an option for him. Not if he wanted to survive. He had not battled through more than ten centuries to get stupidly ensnared by a woman in the end, however special she may be. Getting entangled with women always brought trouble. And loving someone more than thyself just about blasted everything. He knew this. He had seen it happen time and again, repeating like clockwork throughout history, all through his long undead life. This fascination with love and feelings had cost monarchs their kingdoms, saints their sanity and humans their minds. No point living that life if you could learn nothing from experience.

For the hundredth time that evening, he tuned Sookie out of his mind and concentrated on strategizing the cleanup of the wreckage around him.

Someone walked inside the bar and every vampire and supe present was immediately aware of her presence. Eric's attention snapped to her. She walked with the grace of a floating cloud, the crowd just melting in front of her, to give way for her to pass. She wore a form fitting silver dress, starting low on her bosom and reaching her ankles, with an enticing slit at the side that reached her thigh, showing off perfect long legs in six inch silver heels. Her straight, shining gold hair artfully left lose, formed a halo around her face. Blue eyes highlighted with heavy mascara and smoky makeup, red lips with sparkling lip gloss and not even one blemish on her skin. The humans stopped dancing and drinking and just stared. That was not just a pretty face though. A damning, mesmerizing scent of rain and sky wafted from her and every vampire in the bar forgot their true bloods. A collective click of popping fangs rang through the whole bar. _Fairy!_

She walked up to the throne and gave a slight nod to the gorgeous Viking sitting there, not breaking eye contact for even a split second.

"Eric Northman!" her voice was pure liquid, sweet and salty at the same time. "Good Evening!" she gave a seductive half smile. "My name is Claudine Crane. A word with you…" she glanced around the bar and then fixed her smoky eyes on Eric again, "in private?"

He was the last to do so and the sound of her voice combined with her scent was the last straw before Eric's fangs dropped and his sight became clouded with lust for the shining fairy in front of him.

..

..


	18. Chapter 18: Push and Pull

Sookie Stackhouse was a very private person. Content with her small world in Bon Temps, with her gran and Jason, her job at the local bar, her few friends and her world of books. For most of her life, reading books gave her all the adventure she asked for. Of course she wanted to travel the world, actually see the places she read about, but there was no money for that, nor the time. Growing up without parents with just Gran's retirement fund did not leave breathing room for realizing her fantasies. So she taught herself to drown in those fantasies and live them in her dreams, in her thoughts and in her books. Whatever the family lacked in resources, they made up for that in love. Adele loved her grandchildren dearly and even after coming to know about Sookie's telepathy, never felt anything but fondness and love for the girl. She cared for her, became the lost mother and father, became her missing friends, taught her everything she could, scolded her when Sookie was wrong and embraced all her quirks.

But Sookie grew up. In her lonely life, stepped Bill Compton and she thought she got her own fairytale, her own love story, just like those women in her books. Sookie threw herself into the love she found. But it was not really like those fairytales, was it? Something was wrong… One trip to Fangtasia and her heart would not listen to her anymore, her soul was not where she expected it to be. Sookie tried everything; double shifts, gran's sewing circles, more time with Bill; but the shifts left her bone tired and then she became more vulnerable to the feelings she was trying to suppress. The sewing circles which used to be a drag became positively dreadful. Being with Bill became more and more torturous everyday till she could not decide she was feeling guilty because of not feeling for Bill or was she guilty towards herself for fooling around with Bill.

Then that dreadful evening visit with Andre happened.

That was the proverbial last straw. Now Sookie wanted nothing more than wiping out Bill from her life to retain her sanity. But, it was not easy to forget and move on. Especially since Bill simply refused to acknowledge the fact that Sookie had moved on. He would come by every once in a while and insist on speaking to her. He constantly sent her flowers that awkwardly arrived in the middle of her work shifts, making her more the center of attention she was trying so hard not to be. That got to her the most and by the end of a week of this freak show, Sookie was totally leaning towards staking Bill if he so much as uttered the following –

'Sweetheart I am sorry…' _Stake to the dead heart_

'Darling you don't understand…' _Hammer on the head and then stake to the dead heart_

'I insist you talk to me…' _Shove the 'insist' in your 'you know where'! Follow it up with stake to 'you know where' too…_

The worst however, 'You are mine!' _Seriously? Someone please stake me instead! _

Sookie rescinded Bill's invitation to her home and Sam banned him from Merlotte's. As far as going to work was concerned, she just stuck to day shifts and carried a gun Jason gave her, with silver bullets.

One evening Adele found her cleaning everything she could reach, in a daze and on the verge of hysteria. Gran sat her down and asked what was bothering her and Sookie told her about how she was almost killed by her boyfriend and his friend and how she felt angry and used at the same time. Sookie repeated her promise that she would never let anyone make a fool out of her, ever. This brought tears of pride to her gran. What was more was that Sookie had enrolled into the special self-defense classes, held by the sheriff's department on Sundays and had started practicing shooting with Jason again, whenever the two could get together, a couple of times a week… She might have been brought down once, but she was not wallowing on the ground. Her special little girl had stood up to her hurt and was handling it really well.

..

* * *

..

While Sookie's view towards life in general was crashing and altering constantly, everything around her, was still the same, the usual; Home and gran, Jason and his shenanigans, Merlotte's and the daily crowd. Everyone went on with their lives. Everyone had some things they needed to do and some things that they wanted to do instead. Gran wanted a new driveway but there was seldom anything to save. Jason was running around with two girls from town, but deep down wanted to be swept away and in love with one special someone, whoever that was. Each and every person walking into Merlotte's had some inner strife. They were all living their own lives, fighting their own dilemmas, having hopes and fears. Sookie's job was to listen to what they said they wanted, get them their choices, make sure they were comfortable and then clean up after they left. Sometimes they rewarded her with a good tip, sometimes not.

That was her job.

Her curse was to inadvertently listen to what they really wanted when they were saying something else. She tried not to interfere or listen to their secrets lest she be tempted to do something to help them get what they wanted deep down in their hearts. She could not comfort someone drowning in misery, because they had not shared that misery with her. She cleaned up the soiled tables after them but forgetting everything she heard from them was a different matter, not so easy to clean up from her mind. And there was no reward for this inhuman burden. That is what telepathy had always been to Sookie, a burden and a curse.

Despite carrying the burden all her life, Sookie never complained, never lost faith in humanity, never treated anyone with prejudice and tried not judge. She tried her best to be a normal girl next door, a good sister, a loving and responsible granddaughter. Listening to all kinds of thoughts all her life forced her to grow up much sooner than the other girls her age. She never seemed to make friends with them after a point. She tried very hard to mingle but it wasn't easy and she usually ended up feeling like an outsider. When vampires came out in the world, she felt some affinity for them because they were considered outsiders as well, just like her.

Then she discovered the wonderful quite she could have by being close to vampires and she got addicted. Being with Bill was like a well-deserved vacation of silence and rest after a lifetime of thoughts banging on to her like jackhammers. She jumped into that peaceful rest without thinking and got burned.

She never got the time to feel it though.

Maybe she was emotionally already far away from Bill or she was blessed with vampire speed healing where her heart was concerned or she had a really good distraction. The reason did not matter. Before Bill stopped being her concern, she never realized that there was just one threadbare reason holding her back from jumping headlong into a fate she couldn't even dare to admit was possible if she just took one step in its direction. Now without even the guilt for Bill crowding her head, she slowly and steadily became whole heartedly obsessed with the incorrigible Eric Northman.

What was it about Eric? Thrice…Sookie just met him thrice and he found his way right inside her head, messing up everything. She did not notice when this happened or how? She just noticed that she slept near that corner of her bed where she had woken up to find him sitting. She noticed that when she needed a break, she just got in her car and started driving, realizing after moments that she was driving towards Shreveport, towards Eric. She didn't even know where to find him or where he lived. She didn't know anything about him, other than the fact that she had to get near him somehow.

_Congratulations on becoming a fangbanger at last! All of them wanted to get near him that evening in Fangtasia…Shame on you Sookie Stackhouse!_

So then she controlled herself and turned back.

She noticed she felt a strange longing rise inside her as soon as the sun went down. She noticed that she looked up every time someone walked into Merlotte's, finding that she was disappointed as soon as it wasn't a certain someone who had no reason to be there. And Sookie got tired of looking up and not finding him there. A day passed, then another and then a week and another, and Sookie started feeling actual pain, as if she had been separated from her lifeline.

"_Oh stop it. I can't take it! I can't go out there looking for him and he is not gonna come looking for me. He already saved my life twice. He is not my F-ing fairy godmother. Not that I am exactly Cinderella though. Would I go to him if he were the prince charming of the ball?…Oh stop nonsense…I just had to see him once and he ruined everything. No! No one has that kind of power over me. No one rules me like that. I won't let him do this to me. I am a twenty six year old grown up woman, not a teenager for Christ's sake! Stop this madness Sookie or you'll actually become the crazy Sookie he called you."_

_He also saved you…twice…He held you like that…twice…He played with your hair…sigh!_

"_And he is gone for good! He is practically a stranger to me! I don't know him. I can't think about him all the time."_

She made another effort of getting her mind on something else and went about taking orders and delivering the same old fries and beer to the same people who came to Merlotte's every day.

Nothing was working. Not even the townsfolk, the people that comprised the Bon temps social circle, who had not been happy about her involvement with a vampire to begin with, were helping in any way as far as distractions go. You would think they could at least be supportive when she broke up with Bill Compton. But turned out, people were just as caustic as before. A day didn't pass when someone didn't make a rude comment for her at Merlotte's. Out of Sookie's fellow waitresses, only Holly was non-judgmental and was merciful in her thoughts. Arlene got downright bitchy in her enjoyment for Sookie's heart break, always trying to stuff her up with more 'I told you so honey, vampires are blah blah blah…' stuff. That was very annoying to swallow. Although Sam did not comment on her relationship status, he was gloating about being right about _godamn vampers _and a freed up Sookie and thought Sookie would get weak and lonely and seek his company. His thoughts drove Sookie farther away from him.

Every thought, every action and every emotion she felt, turned to that one place she feared to go. She stood on the threshold fighting it out, testing herself, calling out to her desire, waiting…always waiting. What if he did not come and proved that he forgot her the next day? What if she met him somewhere and he did not look at her the way she wanted him to look at her? What if she did the crazy thing and went out there to find him? She became a walking bunch of questions and he did not come…It had been three weeks since she saw Eric and although it felt like just yesterday when he became her knight in shining armor and saved her, it felt like a long long time since she had seen his face. In her heart, Sookie started to accept that it was only a matter of time before she would give in to temptation and foolishly walk up to him, her heart on a shining silver platter for him…_Her heart on a silver platter? Ha! If that wasn't ironic enough! _

She had to force herself to stop thinking and sleep that night. Merlotte's would swamped tomorrow, because of the Halloween holiday and she would need all her energy for her double shift, morning and night, because of the extra rush expected and not to get distracted by the vampire costumes around. What if a real tall, blonde vampire came swooping on her when she was alone on the road? _Mmm…that would be some Halloween to remember_…she smiled at that fantasy and played with it in her mind. Sookie finally fell asleep late that night, still thinking about silver platters, hearts and sexy swooping vampires.

..

* * *

..

Sam did a double take when he took in Sookie's Halloween dress up for the evening. She was wearing an angel's halo headband and small white lacy angel wings on her shoulders. Sookie ditched her plain white T-shirt for a lace white camisole top coupled with dark blue denim shorts. The wings and headband were incongruous with the shorts but strangely looked heavenly on her when she smiled. You couldn't get her glowing angelic skin and heavenly smile in a costume shop for sure.

Everybody was in a festive mood. Arlene had zombie stickers of fake blood on her face and arms and an honest to goodness severed fingers necklace. Holly was looking the exact opposite with her tinkerbell headband of sparkling flowers and sparkling earrings shaped as bells and stars, with her usual Merlotte's uniform. Sam was wearing claws! _Really? _The star of the show was Lafeyette though. You couldn't beat a pink cape, pink fake fangs and a black fitting body suit.

Apart from the usual drunken mess, everyone laughed, enjoyed themselves and made friendly remarks on each other's costumes.

Someone yelled from the corner booth. "Sookie hon', be a real angel and get me some large fries wouldya."

"Coming right up Andie…" She smiled, wrote down the order and turned to go towards the kitchen window at the back, to pass on the order ticket.

She turned and gasped in disbelief.

"_What the HELL!"_

The kitchen window was not where it was supposed to be.

Her customers were not where they were supposed to be.

Merlotte's was not where it was supposed to be!

In place of everything, there was a big dark red hall filled with dim dancing lights and smoke, with a platform in the end, a spotlight on a throne, smack in the middle of the platform. On that throne sat a vampire, her vampire, who she had wished all of her previous night to swoop in on her.

"_I'll be God damned!"_

_.._


	19. Chapter 19: Eric Stop

The kitchen window was not where it was supposed to be.

Her customers were not where they were supposed to be.

Merlotte's was not where it was supposed to be!

In place of everything, there was a big dark red hall filled with dim dancing lights and smoke, with a platform in the end, a spotlight on a throne smack in the middle of the platform. On the throne sat a vampire, her vampire, who she had wished all of her previous night to swoop in on her.

_"I'll be God damned!"_

There he was, sitting on his _damned_ throne.

She had one look at him and breathed out in relief. Just looking at Eric was healing her despair and struggles of the past three weeks.

_I never did stand a chance fighting this out, did I? I really am no better than everybody else here who just want a piece of him. I can tell. I would do anything to have him look at me like he looked at me for the very first time. _

She tilted her head slightly to the side and a slight smile tugged her lips. She sighed and felt something inside her click into place.

_God I am lost even before I started putting up a fight. How will I go back now? I can't go back…Not when I feel this damn euphoric when I look at him. Not when he looks like that at…who is that?_

She followed his line of sight and noticed a gorgeous woman standing in front of Eric… Tall, blonde, stunning, just like Eric. Sookie felt a sharp pang of jealousy and anger as she quickly looked back at Eric. He was gripping the arms of the throne tightly, as if controlling himself from standing up, his fangs were down and his eyes, those deep blue tempestuous eyes that held Sookie's soul in them, were dilated and fixed on the piece of silver perfection in front of him.

Just the intensity of his gaze at that woman…

Her knees buckled and she landed on the floor on her knees, _again brought down by a vampire, _she thought bitterly, just as a wave of nausea hit her.

_NO! _

_No no no…_

The woman had a slight smile on her face too. One look at her and Sookie was sure this was not any ordinary human woman. She didn't know how she knew this, but she did. Everybody else seemed to be drawn to that one creature, as if she had some spotlight on her.

Sookie turned her gaze back to Eric.

_ERIC! Look at me…_

Eric did not notice the lone small figure in white lost in the crowd of the bar and stepped down towards the supermodel in silver.

_No!_

He began moving towards the other end of the room, and the woman followed a step behind him.

Sookie felt everything close in on her. The huge room was making her claustrophobic.

_Don't go Eric! Please…look at me!_

Sookie wanted to follow them. She tried to get up but was stuck, the oppressive surroundings getting to be too much for her nerves. They stepped through a door. Eric turned to shut the door and the woman caught sight of Sookie. The moment she looked into her eyes, a powerful wave of urgency struck Sookie, as if something was deadly wrong and she had to stop it. She gathered all her strength to get up and spoke out.

"Eric STOP!"

The door was half closed when she called out. She saw Eric stiffen, yank his head and blink in surprise.

Someone tapped her on her shoulder from behind. Sookie jumped in surprise and spun around.

"Sookie? Urrmmm…the fries? Can I ,uh, get them?" _What is wrong with her? Why is she stuck at her spot and not bringing in my order? She really is weird…_

Andie Bellfluer was looking at her as if she was having a fit of craziness.

This was way beyond weird…Sookie was sure she hadn't been dreaming because she had been serving people right and left and she sure as hell couldn't fall asleep on her feet. She looked wildly around her, searching for Eric and that silver woman, but she was in Merlotte's, in the middle of a very busy dinner shift.

_Shit! After everything going on, I just had to begin hallucinating now! And in the middle of Merlotte's…If anyone had any doubts about my craziness, tonight was when they buried them! Oh God! What is wrong with me! The town loon award goes to…._

"Sookie?"

Sookie's attention snapped. She buried her shock and apologized before quickly going to the kitchen to get Andie's fries. She served them up and without saying another word to anyone, half ran to the restroom and locked herself in. Once inside, her hands started to tremble and she just stood in front of the mirror above the sink and looked at her own shocked eyes. It was straight out of a mystery or horror or fantasy movie. For the life of her, she couldn't fathom what just happened to her.

..

* * *

..

Dermot stormed through the silent corridors of the autumn palace. The corridor opened up at one side, giving a spectacular view of a terraced flower garden with roses in all imaginable colors. Niall loved roses. Dermot could not help think that his father probably loved the thorns more than the flower itself. He hurried towards Niall's private chambers. He found Niall sitting in the middle of a pile of ancient looking books and dusty yellowing manuscripts, reading a papyrus scroll intently.

His voice did not rise above the level of polite, but he was seething inside. "What have you done?"

Niall looked over from the scroll and assessed his son's mood. _Hmmm angry and not showing it. He might still become king someday!_

"Dermot! Come on, sit."

"I need to know what you did father…"

Niall showed no outwardly sign of any emotion going through his mind. "Are you asking me about my day, son?"

Dermot's control slipped a little at the nonchalance his father was showing. "I am asking you about my daughter! Claudine! What have you done with her?"

Niall fixed a gaze at Dermot and sighed. "Dermot sit down" Dermot huffed and took a seat opposite to Niall on the couch. "Good. Now do you know what I am reading?"

"I don't know."Dermot replied with clenched teeth.

"Well of these are dossiers on supernatural phenomenon over the centuries. All of the books and documents here record sightings, visions, incidents, any other knick knacks on all supernatural beings ever seen. I have quite the collection here." He lifted the scroll he was reading, "This one here is sightings from the human dimension in their sixth century. You see, this is not the first time the strange white flashes have been recorded amongst humans."

Dermot was getting more and more agitated and none of what Niall was talking about made any sense to him in context to his daughter. "Father I am sorry but this is hardly the time to discuss the _light_. Where is…"

Niall cut in "Claudine? Oh yes my dearest fiery granddaughter!" Niall smiled indulgently. "She wanted to go on an adventure Dermot. I am afraid she was feeling a bit antsy here. She is going to help me with my businesses with the humans, just like our dear Claude and Claudette."

"_Adventure? _Youcall this an adventure? You sent Claudine to the snake pit and you call it human _business_ and _adventure_! You knew I had forbidden her to go to that accursed realm again!"

Niall brushed him off with a hand sweep. "Oh calm down son. Claudine is a full blood, powerful, royal fairy. No one can touch her without raising our ire and starting a bloody war. Cut her some slack. She has been confined here since a century now."

"A century is nothing father and you know it. She has been mooning over that filthy vampire ever since she saw him hundred years ago. And you sent her straight to him? WHY?" Dermot was half yelling now, in helplessness over his daughter.

"She wished to go and I sent her."

"She is not pledged and by right she belongs to me. I am not claiming my right in front of you. Instead father, I am politely asking you to bring her back."

Niall's light manner subtly changed and he now gave a frigid look to his son. Dermot quickly lowered his gaze.

"We decided to keep tabs on this Sookie Stackhouse creature. When did you start worrying about Eric Northman so much that you sent your own granddaughter to spy on him?"

"Northman is part of our problem."

"Whoever is the problem, Claudine belongs here, not on some pedestrian spy mission. I am afraid for her safety father."

"She can mask her scent."

"That doesn't explain why you sent her."

Niall chewed the corner of his lip as he thought about how much he could tell Dermot.

"It is time you start putting this realm ahead of your emotions Dermot. I have very good reasons of sending Claudine over. All the reading I have been doing, just blew this little problem that we had out of proportion. I suspect something much bigger is afoot. Now" he again waved the scroll he was reading, "this, is a scroll about miracles in ancient Rome. Look at this one. It says –

_Into the 6th century, a plague struck the city and the sick slept at night in the church of Castel Sant'Angelo. While the devastating plague persisted in Rome, a strange but brilliant white light appeared as a sword over the __mausoleum__ of __Hadrian__, in apparent answer to the prayers of Pope St __Gregory I the Great__ (c. 590-604) that the plague should cease. After the plague ended, in honor of the occasion, the pope called the mausoleum "__Castel Sant'Angelo__" (Castle of the Holy Angel), the name by which it is still known."_

Dermot looked blank. "We know about the plague father and how the people were all healed miraculously on the night the blinding light appeared."

"We also know that our fathers and grandfathers found no traces of magic after the light disappeared. It just healed thousands and vanished without a trace. There was one fairy regent present in Rome who witnessed the light and could not find the source of the magic. He tasted the verve and again found nothing. There was no signature left, no physical signs left other than the healed humans. Have you heard of any such flashes recently?"

"It is not possible that this is the same light we are looking at father. The two events are far far apart from human standards. And there certainly hasn't been any healings in Louisiana we know of."

"True, there have not been any healings. But think. We do not know what happened in that vampire bar or at the back of the shifter's bar, but we know there was a blinding flash of light that fairies could not place anywhere and I could not find the source even when I was right there. This might lead us somewhere. I am looking through all records for more sightings."

"What about Claudine?"

"The two manifestations of the light in our time have two things in common. Sookie Stackhouse and Eric Northman. It slipped from our forefather's hands and it slipped from my hands. We cannot leave phenomenon like that uninvestigated. It was too close to our main portal to Fae. Claudine is my eldest granddaughter, our most beautiful fairy and because she is a Brigant by birth, she can mask her scent and disappear to save herself. This matter is very secret and I cannot let it become common gossip across the realm otherwise the councilors are going to demand closure of our portal. I do not wish that portal closed. I wish to make sure there is no threat and I want to know everything that is out there worth knowing. So we needed someone powerful, clever and trustworthy to get to the bottom of this. Claudine wanted to go. I let her go. She is protected by Neave and Lochlan and her brother and sister."

Niall squeezed his son's shoulder and tried to reassure him.

"She will be fine son. I have faith in her."

Dermot sighed and nodded. He could not argue or challenge his father's decisions. He knew how much was riding on the safety of their portal and their family secrets. For once he decided to let go and have faith in his family.


	20. Chapter 20: In the Middle of Nowhere

The small restroom was not very well lit. The fluorescent bulb was buzzing and flickered a bit. However the light was enough for Sookie to notice the small green and blue patterns flickering on her forehead. She looked up at the light bulb but there was no colored screen to reflect on her face. She bent right up to the point when her nose touched the mirror and the markings were still flickering on her forehead.

_Oh dear God! Now what?_

The mirror was not very clean, rusting at the corners with a layer of soap drops on the entire bottom portion. She saw her trembling hands and looked back up into her image. For a moment, she just stood there, staring onto her forehead in her reflection, fascinated and scared of the changing patterns of the markings. She took some tissues and started to furiously rub her forehead to get rid of whatever it was. The markings kept flickering, changing patterns and moving in an eerie way. Without breaking sight of herself, Sookie took some more tissue, wet it at the basin and cleaned the mirror with it. She took another wad of tissues and wiped in circular movements, keeping a firm pressure to make the mirror as clean as possible. The bar on the other side of the door was hurling a truckload of emotions, voices, monologues and conversations at her, but she concentrated on the task she was doing. As she diverted herself and tried to force her hands to stop shaking, the markings started to lighten up.

_Is calm helping?_

She fixed her unblinking gaze on her forehead and willed herself to empty up her mind, tighten her shields and take deep breaths. The markings faded further.

_Shit! Am I possessed or something? It has something to do with my state of mind. It's fading now…But I have never seen them before and I have been in some really shitty places…What are they?_ _And what the hell was that vision? Was it real? Was Eric real? Was that woman really with him? Did he take her to that other room at the back?_

Her eyes watered up at that thought and the shifting tattoos started to darken again. She looked at her image and sternly told herself some hard truths.

_No don't think about Eric. Don't think about that woman. Why does it disturb you so much? You have no right over him and given that he has already saved you more than once, you already owe him. _

Her insides squirmed again_…But that woman…with Eric!_

Her mirror image silently demanded…_ So what? He can take whoever he pleases to wherever he wants…_

Her heart dropped to her stomach and she cringed at thinking what he might be doing to that blonde. The mirror image seemed to soften her eyes and look at her pleadingly.

_It is just fascination and infatuation. He is so beautiful and out of the world. _

_Yeah that he is…_Both her and the image agreed heartily on that!

_It will go away. We have other crap to deal with right now. _

She reached up and touched her forehead gingerly and nodded at herself.

The marks were now fading away. The only traces left were on her temples, with some lines receding inside her hairline.

Yes she had other things to deal with.

..

* * *

..

When Eric smelled the fairy walking inside his bar, his first instinct was the vampire's instinct within him. The instinct was to fly to her, hold her down, rip her apart and drain her, taste her in every way possible. His ears told him of the collective snap of fangs all around him. But there was something else. The fairy walked up slowly and seductively to him and his hyper sensitive senses told him that this was not the full blast of her scent he was getting. The slight silver aura surrounding her told Eric that she was a pure full blooded fae. But her scent was muted. Why was her scent muted? Why could he still think about all of this if she was indeed a full fae, walking towards him like that. He should have lost his mind by then. Even his thousand years of practice on restraint couldn't prepare him to keep his wits around him when a fae decided to come within the range of his senses. He knew fae were dangerous. More than bodily harm, they could wipe off a vampire's sense of preservation with their scent alone and that had been the undoing of many hapless vampires before Eric. He pinned his piercing eyes on the advancing fairy, very focused on remaining in control and on guard for any sudden moves on her part.

She came to him, introduced herself and demanded a private word.

_Claudine…hmm…did she say Crane? Is she related to Brigant and can block her scent? I would very much like a private word. Maybe she could throw some light on the shit happening around. Maybe the fairies were involved all along._

Eric gracefully rose from his throne and started towards his office. His office would be safer. He needed to take this fairy away from the other vampires of the bar. Her scent might be somehow muted, but the others would still be gob smacked with it and they might not be able to control themselves. She could be related to Brigant and her getting drained may get him into more trouble. Not that he cared for the fate of the fairy, but he still needed to question her and understand why she was here of all the places. Later perhaps he could get a treat? How could he pass up on that opportunity?

Something tugged at the back of his mind. He reached the door of his office and ushered Claudine in. She reached inside and almost instantaneously he was hit with the powerful scent of a full fairy, in all its drowning, mesmerizing, hypnotic strength. He almost tore down the door knob he was still holding.

_Fuck! I can't fight this!_

Just as he was about to lay down his defenses, unable to resist the bewitching scent pulling him towards the fairy, another Earth shattering force cut down the haze surrounding him and blasted the invisible strings of control the fairy was holding over him a second ago.

'_Eric Stop'_

Two words!

He had a moment of pure bliss as he recognized the voice that said the two words, wash over him. Then he saw her.

Sookie.

In the middle of Fangtasia.

Surrounded by worthless vermin.

His one point of bright light in the endless darkness surrounding him.

_Three fucking weeks agonizing over getting her out of my thick head and getting her as far as possible from the clusterfuck coming this way and there she stands again! She came here again! She is here! _

Before Eric could drink in his fill of her sight, she disappeared from his sight and just like that their moment ended. He scanned the floor in a split second and took a sniff for her scent. Nothing but fairy scent came assaulted him, but curiously he was holding fort even through that.

_She is not here!? I can't sense her! WHAT the fuck? _

Eric was well aware of the eyes and ears on him that Sophie Anne had employed to pile more proof against him. They were all around him and he couldn't get rid of them just for the logic of not letting Sophie Anne know that he was aware of being followed everywhere. He had to pretend to not know. He had to pretend to go about his duties as usual and look for Andre with all his resources. Most of all he couldn't show interest in Sookie Stackouse. He couldn't lead the queen's agents straight to her by going anywhere near her, especially when the queen was interested in Sookie as well. It was turning out to be a demented cat and mouse between them now. Staying away and still protecting the telepath with all his cunning. That and finding _clues_ on Andre, which were nowhere to be found. All the while going through one ancient text after another, trying to get to the bottom of the mystery of Sookie and the light. He knew he needed to follow the light trail. He didn't know how but he felt it within his very skin his need to follow it. It was hiding something from him and Eric wasn't one to give up on a chase like that. In between keeping Sophie Anne's sniffers away from the trail of Sookie Stackhouse and following it clandestinely himself, he was getting obsessed with the idea of this more than human girl prancing around in his mind, just out of his reach, teasing him to come catch her. He had but to hold out his hand and touch her.

Just like she flitted in and out of his out of control mind, she came to his bar and disappeared out of sight again.

_Not again! She is not leaving a fucking trail of questions behind her again! _

Eric left a very surprised and very annoyed fairy in his office and practically tore out of the bar in pursuit of the one woman he wanted to pillage and wanted to avoid in huge, equal, distracting quantities.

..

* * *

..

Someone knocked. "Hey! You plannin' on coming out tonight or what?"

"Give me another moment!"

Sookie glanced again at her forehead, panicking again at the receding, flitting marks. She couldn't hide out in the restroom any longer. She quickly removed the hair tie holding her hair in place and spread out her hair in front of her eyes and face, to cover the marks and doing it as much as she could without looking like a banshee.

_Banshee with angel wings! Yeah right! Happy Halloween indeed!_

She ducked her head and opened the door to the restroom to slip out without showing her face to whoever was yelling outside. She also knew she couldn't do her remaining shift with Tetris flashing on her head. She ran to Sam's office to grab her bag and went up to hearing distance from Sam. She called out to him from afar and said that she was not feeling well and going home. He started to walk towards her, but she quickly backed away, afraid that he would see something was totally wrong about her face and beat a hasty retreat through the back door, saying another apology as she ran towards the backdoor.

She knew she couldn't go to her home.

_Gran wouldn't miss this freak show and I need to sort this out first. Who can help me? _

She quickly rattled down her list of friends, family, acquaintances in her mind, ticking each one off the imaginary list, finding they would be even more grossed/ freaked/ wierded out than Gran would. Everyone except...

_Oh for the love of God! I can't go there after that freaky vision! What if it was true? What if he was with her? _

_Don't think about it! Focus Stackhouse! _

_Am I hallucinating? Should I go see some shrink? Oh my God what do I do…_

_Why am I talking to myself like this?_

Sookie was absolutely freaking out by the time she started her car and turned away from the parking, with no idea where she was going. She was driving, completely lost in her mind. The evening rush, the bizarre hallucination, seeing Eric, the moving signs on her head, everything became one big chunk of dead weight on her mind and heart and she couldn't see anything else.

So lost was she in her little bubble that she did not notice when her car crept towards the wrong side of the road and she was suddenly blinded by a car coming straight towards her.

She gasped and jerked the steering wheel away from the road. Her car shuddered and skidded across the loose gravel, screeching towards the woods edging the road. She hit the break with all her strength, but her car had a life of its own and it went straight into the trees, bumping and jouncing her till she was screaming, coming to a stop right at the bank of a swamp, the front wheels already getting sucked in the muddy water, before coming to a complete stop.

There was a moment of silence. Sookie took a mental inventory of her body, one by one concentrating on her limbs, senses, head, back. She looked down herself and thanked mankind for seatbelts. Finding herself in working condition, she turned her attention to the car and the spot she was in. She leaned a little and felt the front of the car go down a bit. The tires made a squishing and gurgling sound and she saw the hood go further down in front of her.

She froze. "Uh o'. Not good."

She realized moving would get her straight inside the swamp and her car really hung on a fine balance. She tried reaching towards her phone in her purse sitting on the back seat, but her slight movements took the car down further inches.

_Crap would this night ever end!_

It was late into the night. Except from that one strategic vehicle on that turn, that had thrown her off the road, she could not hear anything else around. There were just miles of happily chirping swamp insects all around her. While driving aimlessly trying to find a solution to her problems and trying to clear her head, she had driven to some obscure and eerily empty stretch of the road, with no signs around for reference.

_Shit where the hell was I going? And where the hell am I?_

Looking around and not recognizing anything around in the surrounding area, Sookie started to get really worried about what to do next. It felt very inconsequential and very stupid but she couldn't help a small plea from leaving her lips.

"Help"

Only the insects answered with _meep meeps._

She knew no one would answer of course. The human settlements were far off! Her night was getting more unreal and freakish by the minute, something straight out of some comedy of errors movie.

_Half buried in a swamp in the middle of nowhere with no one to help and a phone I can't reach to at the back._

Now would be the time for her swooping vampire fantasies to come true. She couldn't control her small snorting smirk at that thought.

However, keeping up with the outlandish night she was having, the chuckle she heard next, from somewhere above, merely made her roll her eyes in sheer relief and sheer disbelief.

"Do you spend your lovely days planning these rescue missions for me, Sookie? What are the fucking odds here?"

_Yeah damn right! Enter swooping, freaking infuriating, gorgeous vampire to the rescue of perennially troubled blonde Cinderella again! Bit me now!_

She sighed and her body sagged on the seat, as a sweeping feeling of safety coursed through her.

..

* * *

..

**OK so i can't keep these two apart more than I have already... :) **


	21. Chapter 21: Car, Swamp and Vampire

**Again, thank you all for the lovely reviews you have shared with me. I keep feeling amazed by all the encouragement I have been getting from all readers. Thank you for taking out the time and reading this story :)...**

**Keep the reviews coming. I am always hungry for more my dears... :) :)**

* * *

Sophie Anne angrily swept away the contents of her desk as she rose from her chair, fangs down, and snaked her hand in a death grip at the back of Bill Compton's neck, to bang his head down on the hardwood table. She held his head pinned there, brought her fangs very close to Bill's cold skin and dangerously breathed down the exposed neck of the terrified young vampire in front of her. Her two loyal bodyguards Sigebert and Wybert stiffened and readied to attack.

"What do you mean you can't bring the telepath here on your own?"

Bill Compton struggled at the hold to speak up but the queen did not loosen her hold on his neck. He squeaked out, "Majesty, I didn't mean it like that!"

"What did you mean Compton? Care to tell me why you haven't been able to tie her up with you yet? Do you want me to rethink my options?"

Bill got more alarmed. "No, no, Majesty! We can still get her here. I know what to do…You, uh, didn't even have to send Andre."

Sophie's grip tightened on his neck and Bill cried in pain. She was practically hissing in his ear now.

"Don't ever tell me what to do Compton. And don't make me remind you how much I'll take pleasure in stripping off your flesh from your sorry bones, just for the fact that you stood where Andre was taken from and still don't know anything about him that could be of use to me. Thank whatever Gods you whine to, for the fact that Sheriff Northman is going down for Andre, and that you still have a job to complete for me. If you fail to bring the telepath then you are going right down with your precious sheriff!"

She squeezed her hold for a second and then released him. With a flick of her hand, she pushed him back to the chair he was sitting in and the chair almost toppled over. Bill sputtered and gripped his neck, breathing unnecessarily to regain his wits.

"Believe me your Majesty! Unlike sheriff Northman, I am completely loyal to you. I have a plan. Just hear me out. I assure you, you will get what you want."

"Enlighten me Compton! And you better make it good."

She stared daggers at him and Bill flinched. He knew Sookie couldn't be glamored and he had been unable to get anywhere near her for all of the three weeks since Andre disappeared. Between her morning/noon shifts and Eric's covert guards, he couldn't touch her without alerting the sheriff and he really didn't want Eric onto him at that point. So he came up with an evil and cowardly plan of blackmail. "There is a way to ensure her cooperation without glamour or blood. The human is very attached to her grandmother and brother. If we could capture and hold their lives over her head, there is no power in the world that could stop her from willingly walking to us here and she will do anything we want her to do."

Sophie Anne chewed on this and decided that picking up two puny humans was a small price to pay to get a willing telepath in her court and nodded.

"Do what you have to do Compton. I give you your last forty eight hours and then I expect my telepath at my feet. If you mess it up this time, then this would be _the_ last fuck up of your inconsequential life."

She sneered the last sentence and Bill suppressed the insult hot on the tip of his tongue. No, now was not the time to overreact and ruin months of planning and manipulation.

He swallowed his anger at being belittled like that and bowed in servitude.

"You won't be disappointed Majesty! I'll get them here and Sookie Stackhouse will follow like a charm."

"Fine! Get lost then…"

Sophie Anne dismissed him with a wave of her hand and indicated to her guard to get her a donor to feed.

..

* * *

..

_Half buried in a swamp in the middle of nowhere with no one to help and a phone I can't reach to at the back._

Now would be the time for her swooping vampire fantasies to come true. Sookie couldn't control her small snorting smirk at that thought.

However, keeping up with the outlandish night she was having, the chuckle she heard next, from somewhere above, merely made her roll her eyes in sheer relief and sheer disbelief.

"Do you spend your lovely days planning these rescue missions for me, Sookie? What are the fucking odds here?"

_Yeah! Enter swooping, freaking infuriating, gorgeous vampire to the rescue of perennially troubled blonde Cinderella again! Bite me now!_

She sighed and her body sagged on the seat, as a sweeping feeling of safety coursed through her. The strange thing about this feeling of safety was that she knew exactly where it was coming from. It didn't matter that some time back, she had seen him take a strange beautiful woman with him to a closed room and she didn't have any doubts about what he intended to do with her. No, it didn't matter now. Just the fact that he was there washed away all her previous angst over her strange vision. Who knew how true it was or what the whole picture was.

Eric saw the car being sucked in the swamp at an alarming pace and smelled Sookie's blood all around the car. She had surely been injured when the car swerved.

_And where are those wolves who were supposed to guard her! Worthless scum! They are dying tonight!_

Just the sound of her sighing when he teased her to check on her sanity, had been music to his ears. That disturbed him. Agreed that he found her fascinating but there was no reason to feel insanely happy about every breath she took. To distract himself from prodding his thoughts about Sookie, he immediately turned to the task at hand.

"Put your head down. I am going to rip off the top of the car…"

"WHAT?"

Eric snickered silently before saying in a bored drawl. "Head down Miss Stackhouse!" and without waiting for any response, he held onto the frame by the side of her open window and tugged at the top sheet of the old rusty car. It came off without any sort of resistance and Eric silently shook his head at how unsafe that vehicle actually had been. _Good riddance!_

As he ripped the thin sheet of metal away, he saw the little girl sitting inside with her forehead on the wheel and her hands on top of her head, half covering her ears from the screech of tearing metal. He had a sudden urge to wrap her in his arms, hold tight and comfort her.

_So small, so soft, so fragile…_

Seeing her there just within his grasp was wreaking havoc to weeks of his accumulated control. Add her beautiful scent to the picture and he was one hungry, horny vampire, hovering over a helpless damsel, ready to swoop in for a taste of her.

So distracted was he that he didn't care or notice that Sookie was now staring right back at him, with a confused expression, her cheeks already flaming red because he had been doing his own staring since a minute, getting nowhere around pulling her out of the sinking car. Surprisingly for him, he also did not notice that instead of hovering, he was somehow crouching on the car now and his added weight was pushing the car down rapidly.

"Umm… SOS Eric! I am drowning here…"

That brought him back and earned her a slight snapping of his eyes and a smirk as he held out his hand for her to hold on to. She lifted one trembling hand, fascinated by his outstretched strong and large hand and slowly reached out to touch his fingertips. Both of them gasped inaudibly at the first touch. Her hand lingered on the slight touch for a split second that they both savored and then as she raised her eyes to his beautiful tumultuous blue eyes, she traced his entire palm with a feather lite progression and entwined her fingers with his. Eric tightened his grip of her hand, his whole being suddenly filled with her presence, and gave her a gentle tug to pull her up. The small distance between them seemed too much to keep.

The combined weight of Eric on the car and Sookie half standing up from her seat was too much for the balance of the car and it just dived nose down in the swamp. Sookie lost her footing and a small cry escaped her lips just as Eric pulled her out safely in a tight embrace, one hand still clutching at her hand, the other around her waist to hold her close. The car went down and was totally submerged.

The moment her feet left any firm ground beneath them, Sookie clutched onto Eric's linen shirt with her free hand and panicked, her heart beating at an alarming rate, ready to just jump out of her chest. It couldn't jump out though. Because once she was firmly held into the arms of the one person on God's Earth she had been pining for since God only knows when, and fully looked at the vampire who held her so intimately, her heart completely stopped. Not even a flip.

None…

Her heart followed by her breath and then her mind…

She didn't even notice that they were hovering ten feet above ground level, over the swamp that just ingested her car. Every particle of her being just automatically attuned itself to Eric, his strong arms and his overwhelming presence. The only thing to do was to loose herself in his eyes. That was her only awareness and that is the only thing she could do.

There was so much Eric wanted to say to her, to ask her, so much he needed to hear. Right from the moment she walked into his undead life, oblivious to the vision of his homeland she gifted him unknowingly, her amazing scent, the way she was aware of him and called to him even in a coma, the magic, the mystery and then appearing before him this evening in his bar, never giving him a chance to catch her. To say the least, all the questions surrounding her were driving him crazy. He might rationalize everything to just be the thrill of a chase but the way she was bewitching him by just a look and by the way she felt so good in his arms, got him scrambling for somewhere to start.

However when he saw her face up close, he also saw the small, faint runes on her forehead, shining slightly green and blue, appearing and disappearing in split seconds, shifting in the pattern the lines made. He let go of her hand and pushed her hair back from her face to look closely at the astounding vision in front of him. They were starting at the exact center of her eyes and flowing over her eyebrows, across the line towards her temples and towards the center of her hairline. Eric's gaze was transfixed. In his long years on the Earth, he had seen his fair share of the supernatural but this was something else. This was completely beyond his vast knowledge and it chilled him. His hold on the girl became tighter and Sookie coughed up as all air from her lungs was knocked out.

Sookie was positively terrified now. She knew what Eric was looking at. She knew what it looked like to her. By the stunned look on Eric's face, she was quite sure he did not have any good news for her. That amplified her earlier distress and the runes became darker right in front of the shocked Viking.

When she coughed, Eric quickly loosened his hold for the girl to breath and flew her to a dry spot by the swamp, but sufficiently far from the road. He needed to know what was happening and he needed to know fast. And this time, Sookie was not going anywhere from his sight or hold. His eyes narrowed ferociously.

"You and your family have not been honest with me. Explain. Quick!"

It almost came out as an angry scolding and Sookie shrank back till her back was propped against a rough tree. Her face contorted in shock over his sudden rage and tears threatened at the corner of her eyes. She had not imagined her night to be like this and currently it looked like going further south than it already was.

Eric placed both his hands on the tree, on either side of her face to trap her. He hated tears and if Sookie was using them to deflect him then she had another thing coming. He looked fiercely into her eyes and his fangs clicked into place, ready to attack. "NO! You are not going to go teary on me you God Damned girl! Explain this right now or I swear you are never leaving this fucking swamp!"

That touched a nerve with Sookie and her eyes flashed at the threatening vampire. She all but shouted back, whipping up some of her own ire and glaring at him.

"I am not crying! And I _don't_ know what is going on with me."

Eric did not have to raise his voice to threaten anyone. Usually his cold stare and ice cold voice broke the most adept liars but he was struggling to regain his composure and her anger and tears and confusion was not helping. It was only adding fuel to his already spiraling temper.

"Miss Stackhouse, I swear I am in no mood for your little games right now. What the hell are you? Why are you doing this to me?"

Sookie was lost for words. Her smart mouth absolutely abandoned her. Being this close to Eric Northman was distracting for sure. But being this close to a mad, outraged Eric Northman was numbing her faculties when she was already quite shaken up with all the events of the evening. It was just too much. She was just too tired. And she honestly had no idea what was happening to her. She could understand why Eric was getting all worked up. She was terrified too, but the threats were too much. And she sure as hell wasn't doing it on purpose for games or anything he was accusing her of.

"Look here Mr. Northman, I would appreciate if you stop threatening me. This is _not_ about you. I am _not_ playing any games. I did _not_ get trapped in a sinking car on purpose. And I sure did _not_ call you out here to solve _my_ problems. I am grateful to you for pulling me out to safety from my car but this does not mean I am going to let you walk all over me because you don't understand stuff I don't get either."

She pushed him but Eric did not budge. The only reaction she got was a further narrowing of his blazing eyes. Outraged by his reaction and his refusal to budge from the threatening position, she carried on her tirade bitterly.

"Up until now, I used to be an ordinary waitress, leading a perfectly ordinary life with all that is left of my family. I only wanted to be a normal girl, that in spite of my disability, I was managing quite well. I tried and was happy. But then vampires had to come out and within the space of a month, I have had my heart broken, I have been in a two week coma, I have been fangraped and assaulted, and all because I cannot for the life of me keep away from vampires like the good father of our church tells us to."

Eric dropped his hands from her sides and took a step back, shocked at her bitterness.

"My nerves are all but grazed and your pointless temper is not helping matters. You want to know the truth? The truth is that I was serving fries at Merlotte's when I suddenly found myself standing in the middle of I believe your bar and you were sitting on that stupid throne of yours, eyefucking a gorgeous blond like you must do all the time, every night of your undead life."

Eric took another step back and Sookie took a step towards him, hands on her hips, chin defiantly raised, her eyes red with hurt, fury and tears.

"I did _not_ want to be there. I did _not_ want to watch you pick your evening meal right in front of my eyes. I did _not_ want to watch you lead that woman back to that other room. I did _not_ want it. Then I turn and am right in the middle of Merlotte's again when I have no blessed idea how I left in the first place. I don't even know what I saw was real or not and whether I am going crazy or not. Next thing I see, I have neon signs on _my_ forehead. The town already calls me crazy! Now I am a freak and as you can see, I cannot go back to my life, however much I may want to."

She had not realized up to that point that this was the very thought that had been disturbing her so much. Even when she had been different all her life, she could hide it from the others and blend in with all the people in her life. But with the added freak show shining away now, right on her forehead, she knew she could not hide from anyone. She knew she would never be able to blend in and have that ordinary life she had always tried to have. She sank on her knees on the ground, all energy leaving her at that thought and had a full-fledged crying fit. She no longer cared about the vampire watching her with alarm and trepidation, and was apparently completely helpless with something as innocent and as potent as the salt water now flowing from her eyes. She covered her face in her hands and went on hoarsely.

"I do not know what to do Eric! I do not know who to turn to. I was driving blindly when my car swerved. I am scared! I am not hiding stuff from you. I just don't know what is happening to me. There I said it all. Now kill me you big bad vampire and be done with it! That's all you can do to me! But you sure as hell don't get to call me a liar again!"

She was expecting another angry retort, or a rebuke or cold silence till she stopped crying. So she was not expecting it when Eric kneeled in front of her and pulled her into his lap for a gentle embrace. He kissed the top of her head and rocked her. The cool hard muscles of his chest were oddly comforting to Sookie and she gradually calmed down and stopped crying. He was whispering something in her ears but she could not catch the words. All she knew was that the gentle words, the embrace, the soothing hands, even his soft breaths on her neck was everything she had so desperately needed right then and it worked like a balm on her frazzled nerves. She might be heartbroken, shocked, scared and uncertain of her future, but consciously or unconsciously, no one reached out to that depth within her and calmed her down like Eric did. Her breathing aligned to the rhythm of his magical voice and she felt a profound sense of satisfaction and peace course through her body. After a long, tiring, emotional night, she slipped into oblivion and fell asleep in the arms of the vampire.

Eric watched her face in amazement and his lips formed a small smile, all on their own. He had tried staying away. He had tried distractions. The runes on her head were bad news and then he had tried anger. Whatever he might have tried, the fact remained that trying not to feel for her only made him fall more deeply for her. The enchanting Miss Stackhouse was finally in his arms, although asleep. He carefully moved her till he was carrying her bridal style in his arms. He clutched her close and took flight into the night.


	22. Chapter 22: How did you find me

_It was dead quite._

_The small snowflakes fell like shining cotton balls on the frozen lake. It was very early in the morning but there was no light from the sun, yet. The moon was shining somewhere though and just then a gap in the silent moving clouds lit up the lake and the snowflakes. A dense growth of frosty, snow covered birch and pine trees, surrounding the lake, were visible for a few seconds before the shroud of darkness swallowed them up again. There was no wind and yet the clouds were moving. How?_

_There was a faint rusting of twigs on the forest floor and Sookie stepped out in the clearing, out of breath and covered in leaves and dirt. She had been looking for something. She had needed to be somewhere. It was just like the previous nightmares. She stumbled through unknown lands, always looking for something she never found. She just didn't know or understand what she was looking for. _

_Sookie had a number of small cuts and bruises all across her body, perhaps from falling and tripping and running blindly in the darkness. She clutched at a tree on the edge of the clearing to catch her breath and peered out onto the lake, just as the moon shone through the clouds. _

_Someone was standing there, on the edge of the lake. _

_Oh thank God! Maybe the stranger could tell her where she was... Maybe she could get some help…_

_Sookie stepped out into the clearing and slowly walked towards the stranger, calling out._

"_Excuse me…Do you know what place this is?"_

_Silence…_

"_Uhh, excuse me if I am intruding, but, urmm, I think I am kinda lost! Could you…"_

"_Hur kunde du hitta mig?"_

_Sookie gasped! _

_She didn't know the language of the words but she knew what they meant and she knew that voice even in sleep._

"_Eric?"_

_Eric turned to look at her and Sookie could not help a slight hitching of her heart. Those were the same beloved eyes that looked at her; the same calm stoic face, but he was looking at her with an expression of incredulity. His gaze was distant and piercing at the same time, living the two worlds of the present and some reminiscent past. He was her Eric as she knew him but there was something else about him, something definitely different. His hair was very long and all over the place, almost disheveled. He was dressed in leather and furs and was wearing strange strappy sandals. To Sookie, he looked to have walked out of the Lord of the Rings or Beowulf universe or something. She couldn't help a small giggle at that thought._

_At the sound of her giggling, Eric took two steps towards her and came to stand right in front of her, towering over her and as always engulfing her in his presence. He had a smile playing on his lips. Almost nervously, he raised a hand and cupped her cheek, drinking in her sight, with an intensity in his eyes that blew her mind. With his other hand he gently traced her eyes, her nose, her lips and her jaw._

"_Du kom! ... Hur?"_

_Uhh why was Eric behaving so weirdly?_

"_I didn't come here Eric, I am lost! Whats with you?" She nervously glanced around at the snow, the lake and the forest and giggled again at the outlandish scene around her. "And why is it snowing? I have never seen snow falling in Bon temps!"_

_Eric smirked and raised an eyebrow at her questions…_

_Oh there's the damn eyebrow again! _

"_Du vet inte var du är?"_

_Sookie scrunched her face in confusion. Eric smiled and put his fingers on her forehead and smoothed out the lines that were forming there._

"_Du vet att denna plats min kärlek…_ _du kommer ihåg"_

"_Eric Northman, I have been stumbling and falling and lost in this God forsaken arctic forest since like forever. You'd think I'd have noticed if I knew the place!" She huffed and pouted and put her hands on her hips, challenging him._

_Eric gaped at her for a second and then he started laughing. He placed a hand at his side while he doubled over in his laughing fit, his other hand firmly on her shoulder. _

_Sookie's heart warmed at his wonderful and carefree laugh. Outwardly, her pout grew a bit and she crossed her arms in front of her in a defensive gesture. She clearly wasn't getting the joke here. "What's so funny?"_

_Still laughing, he pulled her to him in a big tight embrace and her small frame was almost lost in his big arms. He swung her a bit and then brought one big hand into her hair to tilt her head towards his face. Looking very deeply in her eyes, he spoke in a low, husky, lovely voice. "Så eldig ... så arg ...Vi är hemma min käraste…_ _detta är hemma"_

_Home?..._

_Sookie was very confused and very tired of the cryptic talk that was making absolutely no sense to her. However, being held by Eric like that was oddly the best comfort she could hope for. She snuggled and rubbed her cheek on his chest and put her hands around him to hold him in turn. Being there with Eric, breathing in his wonderful earthy and spicy essence, held securely in his strong embrace, absolutely felt like home._

_Eric kissed the top of her head and placed his chin there while drawing comforting circles on her back. He started humming a soft restful tune and Sookie melted further into the embrace. The tune sounded strikingly familiar though she could not clearly remember where she had heard it before. She just closed her eyes and gave in to the sensations of joy and contentment coursing through her._

_.._

Eric held her and waited for her to wake up. He didn't even notice when he started humming quietly. Sookie was warm and comfortable in a feather soft bed. Still sleeping, she snuggled further into the embrace and rubbed her cheek on his cool hard chest. His scent was comforting and she sighed.

Eric watched her intently.

He had been watching her since quite some time now.

Her steady heartbeat and her scent did wonders to his tired and overworked nerves. He briefly reminisced about her stay in the hospital when he could just watch her sleep and be with her without any questions asked. She had managed to relax any nerves in him then, even if she was comatose. This time it was different though. Too much was hanging on a thread. His queen wanted Sookie and would stop at nothing to get her. He was embroiled in a fucked up case of Andre's vanishing act. If he thought about it and if his mind was in the straight thinking condition, turning Sookie over to the queen and then holding some dirt on the queen's head would get Sophie Anne to withdraw her complaint against him and everything could go back to normal. He mentally ticked it off even before the thought formed fully.

_Not an option!_

Bill Compton was a spy in his area and contributed to getting him stuck in a bad spot and he really needed to be taught some respect. Of course Bill was interested in Sookie too.

_I need to look at all the data collected on him and see how I can use it._

Eric knew for sure that fairies were following Sookie around. An actual full fairy came in his bar tonight and though he did not know why, he suspected more plots.

_Sigh!_

Considering everything, both of them had a giant 'X' of being targets on their backs. And now, whether they planned it or not, they were in it together.

Then there was the light. It always came back to the mystery of the light. Was it a coincidence that he recently had his first experience with a vampire dream or vision or whatever the heck it was, of his mother telling him to follow some kind of light?

And now Sookie was manifesting images of ancient runes on her forehead. Eric recognized those runes. Though his human memories were from a different era and happened a long time back, he still remembered most of it. He remembered his mother praying to stone shrines carved with those runes. Even if he didn't exactly remember the script or the symbols, he was sure he caught a few similar patterns on Sookie's forehead. It was those runes that got him to completely loose it with her. It was frustrating that Sookie knew nothing about them and she couldn't even be glamored to get forgotten memories out of her subconscious mind. They were not ordinary tattoos.

Such things didn't just happen out of the blue. He knew it. He had been in this world since too long and seen too many things to know an awful lot about how such things just didn't happen. It was tough to survive so long and unscathed in the supernatural world he lived in. He had seen people broken, tortured, sold or worse for being a lot less than what Sookie was. Eric looked again at Sookie, sleeping blissfully unaware of the madness around her. His hold tightened on her. If he was honest with himself, he felt very protective towards her.

_Why the hell?!_

Sookie needed to be kept safe and out of the supernatural spotlight. His world would devour her if she was discovered. Thinking about what could happen to her, woke up a consuming need in Eric to shield her from the horror.

The irony was that she trusted him when he didn't yet know what he could to keep her safe. If things at his trial went as Sophie Anne planned, he wouldn't be around much longer. If he was lucky, he would still be silvered for years. How could he protect Sookie if he couldn't even protect himself?

And here she was, resting so peacefully with a vampire. The runes had cleared out during her sleep when he started to hum an ancient song from his birthplace. She still looked out worldly to him though. Eric again thought about what she had said to him earlier in the evening. He was flabbergasted by her knowledge of the exact events that had taken place at Fangtasia. He clearly had not been wrong about her being in the bar for those few moments, however she managed to do that. So in addition to the telepathy, was she a psychic or spirit traveler of some kind too? Eric smiled grimly at that prospect. She could never go back to that life now. He was also not sure how he had been able to ignore and leave a fairy in his own office to go after Sookie. She must have some kind of magic. Things never went the expected way when she was around! And she wanted a normal life?

Without meaning to or without even knowing about it, Sookie was now entrenched deeply in the supernatural world and he did not know how to begin talking to her about it. The question now was, would she trust him enough?

The sooner he understood her and she him, the sooner he could think about some way to outmaneuver the queen and make her safe. _Where to start?_

Eric's phone buzzed in his pocket and he carefully shifted without jostling Sookie, to see who was calling. It was a message from Pam.

_Did you leave a Halloween treat for me in your office? Or is it a trick?_

Ah! The fairy…

He quickly typed back-

_Don't do anything. Get her contact details, tell her I won't be back at the bar tonight and apologize that I walked out on her. I have some business to settle. And Pam, DO NOT play! And DO NOT let any vampire drain her!_

A second later, he received a pouty face with a trade offer consisting of clothes and shoes.

Eric sighed and replied with a zombie face. He knew this was coming. His phone beeped again. _What now?_

_Why are you so happy?_

Of course his child would feel that and like the meddlesome creature she was, would want to know.

_Nothing you should be concerned with. How is business? Anything I need to know?_

Another flash with a reply.

_I am concerned with my maker's lack of boredom. Business is booming. Halloween party a success. _

Eric chuckled and put away his phone. Pam was bored and would not stop the banter all night. Everything was alright at the bar and that was all he needed to know. He could now concentrate on other things. Sookie was clearly not waking up soon and the night was wearing off. She would have to stay over in his home during the day. He was surprised at himself that he didn't feel any threat to his security from her. Opposite to that, he felt thrilled to have her this close. Plus, being able to see her as soon as he rose for the night was oddly exciting. He rationalized the thought with a lengthy explanation to himself that getting to know her side of the whole fucked up story would be immensely useful for him.

_Yeah right! Whatever lets you sleep, or uh, die peacefully!_

He emailed Bobby the code for his resting place and instructed him to bring human food and any other _stuff _that a human woman might need during the day. On second thoughts, he included a footnote to be very polite with her and help her with anything else she might need.

Eric needed to know where her bodyguards were and why they hadn't contacted him yet. He also needed to take care of his area business and would have to make a number of calls to take care of all that he was planning. He had to read through the nightly updates from his other contacts, wanted a report from Adele and Jason's guards, had a meeting with the geek who managed his surveillance server and then subsequently an hour kept aside to discuss the surveillance feeds and data with the ex-homeland security agent whose sole job now was to knit pick through all the suspicious material Eric sent him over to analyze. He could have been taking care of all this business from Fangtasia but he did not want to leave Sookie alone during the night, while he could keep an eye on her. After tonight, he seriously didn't want to trust anyone else with her.

Having her there, with him, gave him a fresh reason to fight out his idiotic queen and redeem his name. If it were not for Sookie, he could simply have pulled all dirt on Sophie Anne and exposed her to the Vampire Council. They would have found her guilty of illegal procurement, illegal vampire blood trade and illegal dealings with other supes. Sophie Anne would never put the grudge of one missing child who attempted the draining of a valuable asset in his area above losing her face in front of the whole vampire world. She would have had to step back. Even if the council did not put her away, Eric knew he had the other sheriffs of the area in his control and could simply overthrow the queen any day. But doing all of that was forcing his hand at the game before he wanted to go all in. He would also be forced to disclose Sookie's talents to the vampire council, in order to justify his supposed removal of Andre. The vampire council would certainly want the girl for themselves then and he had nothing on the council apart from spies.

Eric Northman had never taken impulsive, desperate measures and he would not do so now. It was simply not his style. All of these had to remain Plan B. He focused his gaze again on Sookie's peaceful face and took an unnecessary deep breath. Then he nuzzled her hair for his fill of her scent and kissed her forehead, before slipping quietly out of the bed and the room. He needed to work on his Plan A. He needed to come up with something to deflect the queen, without having to give up Sookie and without involving the council for now. Sookie's and his life and freedom was depending on it.

..

..

..

..

I don't know Swedish and this is what I could find from a number of language translators online. I hope I did not mess up anything. If something is wrong, I apologize for that and request my dear readers to please help me out with the correct translations

**Translations** -

**Hur kunde du hitta mig?** - _How did you find me?_

**Du kom !... Hur?** – _You Came!…How?_

_**Du vet inte var du är?**__ - You don't know where you are?_

_**Du vet att denna plats min kärlek…**__**du kommer ihåg**_** – **_You know this place my love…you will remember_

_**Så eldig ... så arg ...Vi är hemma min käraste…**__**detta är hemma **__– So fiery…so angry…We are home my dearest…this is home_


	23. Chapter 23 Thief

_A few hours earlier…_

Bill Compton hurried to Bon Temps, refusing to waste even a single minute of the forty eight hour timeline he had. Speeding and glamoring a patrolman on his way, he completed the five hour journey in three hours. Still it was midnight by the time he reached his home and not wanting to wait for the next night, directly set off across the bordering cemetery, towards the Stackhouse home. He lurked in the shadows of the trees around the property and concentrated on the sounds and scents coming from the house.

_Nothing!_

He inched closer to catch anything coming through and caught a faint movement from somewhere at the back of the house, near probably where the kitchen was supposed to be. He smiled to himself with the promise of prey. Bill carefully circled around the trees to get closer to the kitchen door at the back and then he planned to lure whoever it was inside to get close enough to snatch up. It would be better if it was the grandmother because Sookie couldn't be glamored and would be a problem. Right now his priority was getting the grandmother to one of the queen's safe houses just outside town and then he would go after Sookie's moron brother. He reached the back and peered inside the screen door and windows. It did look like Adele in the kitchen.

_Brilliant!_

Bill sniffed and listened in again. It appeared that Adele was alone at home. Just what he needed! In his glee at Adele being alone in the house, he totally failed to notice that he was no longer alone in the woods at the back of the house.

He moved at human pace to casually reach the back door and knocked on the screen door.

"Mrs Stackhouse?"

Adele turned to look at the late evening visitor and cringed internally. Bill Compton surely was one daft customer. Her granddaughter's repeated refusal to see him or answer his calls seemed to have no effect on him whatsoever and he completely glazed over how unwelcome he was at the house. Still, she was a southern lady and social etiquette was deeply ingrained within her. Even if a guest was very unwelcome and undesirable, he was still a guest and had to be talked to politely. But, she did not plan on inviting him in. _No sir, not in my home! _

Adele Stackhouse forced a determined smile on her face and stepped towards the door. However she stopped two steps from the screen door, deciding this was the most courtesy she could show to the vampire who had gotten her granddaughter molested. If she could, she could have staked the pompous busybody herself the day Sookie told her everything about him and his creepy friend.

"Good Evening Mr. Compton. What can I do for you?"

Bill smiled politely, ramping up on his southern gentleman charms.

"Forgive me for intruding Mrs. Stackhouse. I hope I am not keeping you from your rest. However what I needed to discuss could not wait until later." He gave a lopsided contrite smile.

"I am sure whatever it is can wait till tomorrow evening."

Bill dangerously hung right on the threshold, and with a concentrated effort on the old lady standing two steps from him, trapped her eyes with his gaze and said in a charming voice, "I am sure you want to know what I want to say Mrs. Stackhouse. Now won't you invite me in for a moment?"

Adele lost control of her thought and with glazed eyes, gave the damning invitation for the vampire to enter her home.

Two things happened right then as Bill Compton set foot inside the threshold.

In a blur of movement Bill grabbed Adele, and ran out of the house with her. Tray Dawson, the werewolf in charge of guarding Adele, turned to wolf form and dashed from his hide out in the trees across the yard when he saw what Bill was doing.

Bill was still on the porch steps when the big wolf attacked him from behind and sunk its claws on his back and legs. Bill shrieked and dropped Adele, to free his arms to fight the wolf.

Adele's head hit the railing. Still in glamored daze, she lost her footing and stumbled over the steps, hitting her head again on the sharp edges and then crumpled on the ground where the steps ended.

Bill lunged backwards in an effort to dislodge the wolf but Tray Dawson held on strong. While Adele lay on the ground, the vampire and the wolf rolled together in the dirt, fighting, biting and tearing at each other, around her. So engrossed were they that neither noticed when a blazing ball of light hit both of their struggling bodies.

From the shadows of the woods, out stepped a young and beautiful man, just as the wolf and the vampire went flying back and hit the ground with Tray immediately shifting back to human form before losing consciousness and Bill just being plain knocked out of his mind.

The man from the woods, was stunning, to say the least. There was an aura of crackling energy around him. He would have been lovely to look at if he did not have an absolutely lethal expression burning in his eyes. He started towards the vampire to finish him off first, when a groan escaped Adele.

"Fintan! Is that you?"

The whisper was too low for a human to hear. But she was not talking to a human. She was talking to a fairy. The fairy, who had been a big part of her carefully protected past, who had fathered her children and who had claimed her as his in the supernatural world.

..

..

Alcide Herveaux lurked in the shadows of a tree beside Merlotte's parking lot and internally cursed Eric Northman for holding so much power over his head. He could have been home, spending time with his girlfriend Debbie Pelt, but Eric had to choose tonight of all nights to keep an eye on his precious waitress, from outside of the small grimy bar. Yes sure the girl was pretty and all but she could not be worth so much to the Sheriff.

_So much business to attend to and I am standing here like a pathetic guard dog! Thanks dad!_

He hated that his dad had put him into a position where he could not ever say no to whatever the vampire sheriff asked him to do. For the sake of his father's debts, he had to stoop down to watch over a blond waitress in a no count town. And he couldn't even talk to her or ever let her know that he was watching.

_Like a bloody thief! Will this night ever get over! Why is that shifter not enough protection? Why are vampires after the blondy anyways!? Don't they get enough sluts to feed from already?_

He kept up his mental tirade but never lost his attention from his surroundings, constantly checking the area for any threats, vampires in particular. He hated the job but he still was one of the best fighters of the pack. And he still was honorable enough to do what he was required to do, to the best of his abilities. The motivation to do this particular job to the very best of his abilities also came from the way Eric had threatened him to do it. Alcide really didn't want to get on Eric Northman's wrong side. He knew quite well that death was considered a heavenly gift by the time the sheriff was through with his victims. As much as he hated to admit it, self-preservation really was the intelligent route to take when dealing with Eric Northman. So he swallowed a bitter pill and kept up his vigil.

However, a few hours into the girl's shift, she disappeared at the back of the bar. Alcide could no longer spot her through any of the windows. He knew it was risky to go inside because he was too big to not notice. And Eric had been very clear about not getting noticed. Maybe she went to the restrooms or was taking her break out back. Alcide moved towards the back and didn't see Sookie there.

_Her car is here…Hmmm restroom then…She is definitely inside…How dangerous can that be?_

He waited patiently for her to return to her tables. Twenty minutes after that, he still could not spot her anywhere. He debated going in to check out and finally decided to just go in and pretend to talk to Sam. Sam was keeping an eye on the inside and must know where she was.

He didn't know that as he was entering Merlotte's, Sookie was rushing out the back door to escape the bar.

He navigated through the unruly crowd and went up to the bar to talk to Sam. He then sat down and waited for Sam to finish serving some customers. He nodded at him once Sam was done.

"Merlotte"

"Alcide"

"Is she safe?"

"You didn't see her leave?"

Alcide immediately stiffened at that, shocked that he had not noticed Sookie leaving

"She _left_?! When?"

Sam was surprised too that Alcide had not seen Sookie leave Merlotte's.

"Just now! You might still catch her outside."

Alcide did not wait for Sam to finish what he was saying and rushed outside. Her car was gone. He sniffed and looked at the dirt tracks her car may have left. The car went towards the road but the trail died out after that. Not that Alcide couldn't sniff Sookie out. The problem was that there was no scent trail to follow. Not a trace. In place of the girl's scent, there was a muffled sweet scent all around him and he could make no sense of direction from it. It was everywhere. It started from nowhere and finished nowhere. Alcide was truly stuck and looked around in despair.

_Shit! The vampire is going to kill my family! Where did the stupid girl go?!_

Alcide rushed inside again and cornered Sam.

"Did she say where she was going?"

"Did you not see her outside? That was quick! She did seem to be in a hurry. She said she was going home. It's late and she never goes anywhere else. With the condition of her car, she would not have gone far. And Alcide, you better catch her on the way or else…"

Alcide interjected gruffly, "Yes! Yes I know what will happen if I lose her and something happens. I am going after her. I'll call when I find her."

Alcide left in a hurry and Sam started calling Sookie's phone to reach her. She never picked up.

..

..

Fintan stopped in his tracks. As angry as he was at the time, he could not ignore Adele's call. She lay injured at the bottom of the steps of her porch, barely conscious. Eyes still on the prostrate vampire and the wolf man, Fintan hurried towards Adele.

He gasped when he looked at the full extent of her injuries. She had lost a lot of blood from the head wounds and was still losing it at an alarming rate. This was fatal at her age and frail state. His heightened supernatural senses told him she would not live through the night.

But he couldn't let her go.

He loved her.

He had never taken any other fairy mate, much to the disappointment of his father Niall. Fintan had always considered Adele to be his only partner, even though Adele had had a human family. His children Corbett and Linda were the bright points of his existence. If Adele had allowed it, he would never have left their side. But his beloved was a very stubborn woman. She had wanted a normal human existence and she had refused to leave her human husband. Now when she lay in his arms, taking her last breaths, he silently cursed his lineage, for being a fairy, for being a royal, for not being human enough for her. He wanted to kill himself for being late. He should have protected her better. This should not have happened.

He carefully lifted her head and placed it in his lap. Adele cracked her eyes and smiled faintly at him. She tried to raise her hand to touch his cheek but her arm fell weekly back to the ground. The fairy tenderly took her hand in his and placed it on his cheek for a caress.

"Hold on dear one. I'll save you. Just hold on till I get you help."

Adele struggled but managed to say in a low voice. "I don't have much time. I can barely see you right now. It is the end. Let me go."

"No! I'll save you. I'll take you to my home. You just have to hold strong to teleport. Father will be able to heal you."

The old lady smiled with all her last remaining strength. "And you called _me_ stubborn?"

Fintan gasped and could not help his tears at his stubborn, pigheaded, beautiful mate. "You will never listen to me will you?" Then with steel in his voice he added, "I will destroy every vampire and wolf I set my eyes on before meeting you in the afterlife my love! They will pay for doing this to you!"

With another pull on her dwindling reserves of strength, Adele shook her eyes. "No. The vampire took me…the wolf…uhhh…he was fighting the vampire…for me…you won't go after anyone…you won't put yourself in danger…"

Fintan felt her end approaching and tightened his arms around her in anguish, in a bid to shield her from death itself. He was sobbing brokenly now. "No…No no…"

Adele smiled again, this time with sadness "I always loved you…"

Her hand went limp, still touching his cheek. Her heart gave a last labored tug and then fell silent too.

"No! No no no…Adele, my love, talk to me. Come back to me."

He desperately clung to her and listened for any sign of a pulse or life in her. But she was gone.

Bill was the first to recover from the attack. He was suddenly hit by the overpowering sweet scent of a fairy all around him and completely lost his senses. All he knew was that there was a being with this heavenly scent and that he had to drain every last drop of blood from this being. He spied on the hunched form of the fairy, sitting with his back towards the vampire, swaying back and forth with the limp body of Adele Stackhouse in his arms. In the blink of an eye, Bill was behind the fairy and latched his fangs onto his shoulder.

..

..

When Alcide reached the Stackhouse home and moved towards the back where he heard disturbing sounds coming from, his hackles rose at the scene playing out on the yard. A stranger clutched the lifeless form of Adele Stackhouse to his heart and Bill Compton was draining the stranger. He saw his friend Tray Dawson sprawled a little distance away and quickly tried to figure out the meaning of what he was seeing.

Undesirable number one Bill Compton was draining a person clutching an injured and possibly dead Adele, with Tray out of it. He couldn't find the girl and this bloody vamp picked this moment to attack the old lady!

_Fuck these vamps!_

He ran to the back of his truck and reached for his emergency silver chain. Not breaking his stride at all, he pounced on Bill Compton and efficiently secured the already drunk vampire in silver, before pulling him away from the other man. Just one look at Adele told him that the lady was dead and he couldn't do anything about it now.

Next Alcide ran to Tray to check the extent of his injuries. He could not find any apparent external injury but Tray lay dazed and out of it. He shook Tray a little but got no response from him.

_Shit what a mess! I hope the blondy is safe somewhere! I can ask Sam to look for her while I see to cover up this stuff here. Shit! Shit! If Compton got to her before here, I am dead already! I have to inform Northman now! _

He cringed internally at the prospect of telling Eric that Adele was dead and he couldn't find Sookie either. Plus he had an unconscious Tray Dawson and another man who was still crying by Adele's side, on his hands. He didn't know him but couldn't let that strange man die either. By his scent, Alcide could tell that the man may not be human. Keeping an eye on the man, Alcide dialed the Merlotte's number. He kept it short and quickly filled Sam with whatever he saw and told him to look for Sookie. Sam panicked and didn't even bother putting the receiver down before running out the bar.

Then he took a deep breath and dialed Eric's personal number, with a sinking feeling of dread.

..


	24. Chapter 24 It Flows from You to Me

***Contrite face* I am really sorry for the long delay in updating this one...There is really no excuse...But I hope you have not forgotten this story and would contnue reading and somehow putting up with my errant ways :)**  
**Do let me know if you like it...**

* * *

Eric was livid when Alcide told him what happened. Shit like that wasn't supposed to happen on his watch.

For the safety of everyone involved, it was good that at the moment, Sookie was safely sleeping in front of his eyes, otherwise there would have been a serious hit to the werewolf and shifter population of his area. And however much they messed up, Alcide did have the very inebriated and silvered Bill with him and had gotten help for Tray. By the description given by Alcide and the revived Tray, Eric guessed that a fairy had attacked them. Most certainly the fairy was attached to Sookie's gran, because fairies never did anything for anyone other than themselves unless it was a mate or a relation, and the fairy had defended the grandmother. Bill must have tried to kidnap Adele, no doubt to get some leverage over Sookie. The fairy must have come to rescue and then Bill attacked him too. By some stroke of good fate, Alcide saved the fairy and since Alcide was working for Eric, it meant that Eric could now work something out with the fairies without starting a war. He called Dr Ludwig and arranged for her to visit the ailing fairy too, another act that would win him favor with the fairies. He then messaged Pam to go take hold of Compton and keep him at Fangtasia till he could get to the fucker himself.

Eric now stood on the doorway of his bedroom, looking at Sookie, sleeping peacefully in his bed, feeling torn.

How was he going to tell her? She was so fragile, especially after last evening. They didn't know what was happening to her and now she had lost the woman she loved so much. It still needed to be done. He needed to tell her. She had to handle this one. She had to pull through. She had to be strong…

He knew he had to go to the scene of crime, take charge and do the cleanup required. But he wanted to talk to Sookie first. She needed to know and there was no one else to do this.

He slowly walked towards the sleeping girl and sat on the bed at her side. Her hair was tangled. She had tear stains all over her face from the evening before. Her chest rose and fell in a hypnotic rhythm of her breathing. Her lips were slightly parted. There was that faint feeling of a glow around Sookie that Eric had always seen in her, right from the start. Maybe it was in his eyes or maybe she _was_ ethereal. She looked completely at peace and completely at home in his bed. Right there, sitting by her side, looking at her, surrounded in her scent, something stirred within his dead heart. He touched her cheek gently, reverently and whispered.

"Be strong min kära …"

He deeply inhaled her scent, and then called out in a louder voice. "Sookie? Miss Stackhouse? Wake up!"

Sookie stirred. Her eye lids creased and she blinked. First thing she saw was Eric leaning close to her face, caressing her cheek, looking at her intently. A smile slowly spread on her lips that reached her eyes.

"Hey" she said softly, a little hoarse from the sleep.

Eric brushed a few of her stray hair from her face. "I need you to wake up." He said quietly, trying to be as gentle as possible.

Sookie frowned at his odd expression. His jaw was locked in determination but his eyes were choked with so many emotions. He looked to be in turmoil. She placed her hand over his where he was touching her face. She couldn't understand it but she wanted to comfort Eric and ease away his pain. She didn't break her gaze as she sat up on the bed and Eric leaned back a bit to give her room to sit up.

"You are worried about something. What is it?"

Eric was surprised at her observation. He was adept at hiding emotions and he was sure he was hiding them well, right then. _How did she know?_

He was going to have to tell her the news so soon after her meltdown. Before that, he needed to make sure she was at least physically fine.

"How are you feeling? You had a few injuries from your accident and I took the liberty of cleaning them up for you before I put you to bed. Are you in pain?" He was still using his gentle half whisper.

Sookie squeezed his hand_…Oh so that's what's worrying him! Me and my troubles! He cared for me. Again! He cleaned me up. That was…that was…sweet…_

She smiled softly and caressed Eric's cheek in return. "I am fine. Thank you for taking care of me. You know I never get a chance of expressing my thanks whenever you save me from something or the other. It just keeps happening and then you are gone before I get to say anything. But you have always been there to save me."

Although Eric's face did not move a muscle, his eyes seemed to smolder when Sookie said that.

"I …uh…feel the _need_ …to keep you safe."

"You don't _need_ to do anything for me Eric. But I am so thankful and so blessed that you do. So let me thank you properly."

He looked uncomfortable. To be thanked for nothing by Sookie at the moment, when he needed to deliver the news about her grandmother was eating him. But he needed to tell her and so he steeled himself.

"Don't thank me yet. I have brought you in the middle of a storm. I am really sorry for that Miss Stackhouse."

She brought both her hands up and held his face. "Shush…"

Eric closed his eyes for a moment, savoring her touch, and when he looked at her again, something was shining there, in addition to the other jumble of emotions flitting across his face.

Sookie felt a strong urge to be closer to him.

And she needed to say something...

"Before you say anything…" She brought her face close to his and nervously stopped an inch from him.

Eric went still.

This was the boldest thing Sookie had ever done in her life and she silently thanked Eric in her heart for being so still. If he moved, if he broke eye contact, she might not have the courage to do this.

"I don't know why I am doing this. I never do this." She gave a short nervous chuckle and glanced at his lips.

"I want to thank you…" and she looked in Eric's eyes again, "for taking care of me when your club was attacked…"

She closed the distance between them and touched her lips lightly to his chin, before pulling back an inch again,

"and I want to thank you for visiting me when I was dead to the world…" She tilted her head and softly kissed his cheek,

"I want to thank you for keeping my secret safe…" she placed another soft kiss on his other cheek, "thank you for saving me from that creep vampire who was draining me."

She took a small breath and gently pressed her lips on the tip of his nose and both of them chuckled for a second before she whispered "and for tonight" Sookie gulped once and slowly, hesitantly, kissed him on his lips, before moving an inch back again.

Eric brought his hands to hold Sookie's cheeks and held her face. His eyes burned into Sookie's and once again, under his gaze, Sookie felt like her mind was breaking away from her reality. The very air between them was vibrating with tension and she could feel each and every particle of air that danced between their lips. Her soul was chaffing with want to float in his essence. Her arms found their own way around Eric's waist.

His voice almost broke with emotion when he whispered in question and confusion "Sookie?"

"I've got you. I'm right here." She whispered back with conviction and closed the inch of distance between them till their lips met again. Eric's entwined his long fingers in her golden tresses and he tilted her head a little to deepen the kiss. He knew he needed to talk to Sookie about her grandmother. He knew Sookie was untouched and that he should control himself before things went too far. He knew the dawn was approaching. But he couldn't deny himself that kiss. Not this time. Because this might be the only chance he got to kiss the girl he was falling in love with. He poured all his want, his wait, his adoration, his love into the kiss and let go of himself completely. Yes, it sounded crazy but that's what he did.

Suddenly Sookie's hold tightened on his back, her nails practically digging into his skin under his shirt. She grew rigid and Eric thought maybe he had gone too far. He pulled himself back and looked at the wide eyed girl looking strangely at his chest.

"Sookie? Min Kara? What is it?"

Her eyes snapped back to him and Eric winced by the shock on her face. He let go of her face and slid a foot back from her. Sookie's hands landed in his lap as she continued staring at him.

"Sookie talk to me..." He looked desperately for anything in her expression that could tell him what had happened. And he desperately wanted to close the distance between them.

"Eric…have we done this before? Have you… kissed me before?"

_What?_ "Sookie I have a nearly photographic memory Min Kara…Trust me, I would remember if I had kissed you before."

Sookie tilted her head as she silently regarded Eric. She knew it. She knew they had never kissed before and she also knew that she had kissed him before with the same sense of conviction. It made no sense. Why did his lips feel so familiar? Why did his hands in her hair brought her to a moment of déjà vu? There was only one way to find out. And it was pulling at her heart like the taut string of a violin.

She rose on her knees and slowly crawled towards him, never breaking eye contact. Eric sat perfectly still, again knowing what she needed. Even with him sitting and her on her knees, she barely reached at the level of his eyes. And his lips... Sookie took hold of his face in both her hands and whispered, "I am going to kiss you…"

She leaned forward and kissed him, passionately, desperately, and her hands went around his neck. Eric grabbed her by the waist and held her close, as close as he could. His control flew out the window, his mind was spinning and he was two seconds away from completely consuming the angelic goddess who fit perfectly in his arms. Sookie took another step to straddle him and her legs folded around Eric on both sides. She was now as close to him as was physically possible, with the clothes that is, and they both gasped as Sookie's heated body melted into his cold flesh. That was it! The heat, the essence, the touch, the light seeping through every pore of her skin, tipped Eric off the edge and his fangs dropped. They pricked her lower lip and a single drop of blood hit Eric's tongue like a wrecking ball. He groaned and sucked at her lower lip, and Sookie felt the vibrations reverberate all through her body like an electric current. In that moment of abandon, she bit at his upper lip and broke skin, tasting his blood, mingled with her own, for the very first time.

Eric growled on her mouth. The cadence of the growl would have scared her if she was coherent. Now, it just reduced her to a shivering needy mess. His hands dug into her sides and the delicate net material of her angel dress camisole disintegrated instantaneously. It was just her, around him, inside him. Her bare skin under his hands was warm, soft, like velvet. Eric's lip healed and Sookie bit again. He backed into the bed and lay down, taking Sookie with him, not breaking the kiss or his hold on her. Her warmth started to travel up his fingertips, heating up his hands. It traveled with a life of its own, up his arms, taking root in his very blood flowing through his veins.

Sookie was now lying on top of him, in the middle of the bed.

Eric flipped them so that she was now trapped between his arms and legs. He pulled away from the kiss to look at her. She was glowing, like his own personal sun. Eric looked at her in awe as he struggled to comprehend the beauty of the woman in front of him, snug in his arms, eyes closed, mouth slightly open and lips swollen from the searing kiss they had just shared. Her soft glow had taken the form of a million tiny fibers of light flowing across her skin, like blood vessels filled with the rays of sun. He needed to look in her eyes to believe she was actually there with him.

"Open your eyes min älskare…Look at me."

Sookie opened her eyes and her breath caught in her throat. She brought her hand and gingerly touched Eric's cheek, his lips and then his fangs. "You are glowing…"

"No min kärlek…you are the glow in my darkness here…" and he kissed her fingertips.

She shook her head and grabbed one of his hands on her side and pulled it in front of their eyes. "No! Look…you are glowing…we are glowing…"

Eric looked at his hand and his eyes grew wide with shock! There it was, the glow, the light flowing through Sookie's bare skin, which had somehow found a way inside him and was now running through his veins too. Their clasped hands dazzled with the light flowing like a river, starting from Sookie's hand, making its way to Eric's skin and then back, to be lost between the two. The glowing fiber was connecting them, enveloping them and growing within them, taking a life of its own. This was not a vampire blood bond. This was something entirely and astoundingly else.


End file.
